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Newcastle midfielder Joe Willock has praised the attentiveness of head coach Eddie Howe during his rehabilitation from a hamstring injury.

Willock, 24, made his comeback during Newcastle’s 1-0 loss against Borussia Dortmund, having spent more than five months on the sidelines after pulling up in the win over Brighton in May.

“He (Howe) never went a day without seeing me, without speaking to me, asking how my mental side was,” Willock said.

“We had a lot of good conversations. It means a lot — when you’re out for a long time, you have this fear that people forget about you.

“But the gaffer, he made sure he always saw me every day. We have a good relationship and I truly respect him a lot for that.”

On Newcastle’s defeat, Willock added: “We were a bit disappointed we couldn’t tuck away those chances. We’re competing at the highest level now.

“We’re gonna analyse it (the loss), we’re gonna look back at it and we’re not gonna let it set us back too much. We’re gonna push on, we have a real tight group here.”