EDDIE Howe admits Jamal Lewis' Newcastle United future is "unclear" after a season spent on the fringes at St James' Park.

Lewis has only played seven minutes of Premier League football for the Magpies this season and made two appearances in cup competitions.

The left-back, who joined Newcastle for £15m in 2020, has his path to the first team blocked by Dan Burn and Matt Targett, and while Howe has been hugely impressed by Lewis' application and attitude, the 25-year-old, who still has two years left on his contract at St James' Park, is likely to move on this summer.

Howe said: “The future is a little bit unclear for him.

“He’s very much a valued member of our squad at the moment.

“I’m very aware I’ve not been able to give him the football he wants this season but I would say his game has developed behind the scenes.

“The work he’s put in behind the scenes every day to improve himself with the coaches here has been brilliant to see. His game has been in a really good place, just I haven’t been able to give him the opportunities to show that. He’s someone we value and believe.

“As I sit here now, I don’t know what the future will hold for him next year.”

Had things worked out differently, Lewis could have played a big part in Howe's Newcastle rebuild. The defender was a regular starter in the early weeks of Howe's tenure, named in the starting XI for four of his first six games, but he suffered a hamstring injury and was left out of the 25-man squad for the second half of last season.

Opportunities this season have been hard to come by.

Howe said: “It’s amazing how fate shows its hand. I think he played at Liverpool and played a couple of previous games and was in good vein of form and helped us to our first win over Burnley.

“But then he pulled his hamstring and it meant we were really light in that position so we recruited Matt [Targett] and now Dan’s stepped up this year.

“There’s real competition for places in that area, which has been great for me personally but obviously more difficult for Jamal to deal with. But I have to say, he’s acted impeccably."