Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe expects Miguel Almiron to be back in April.
The Paraguay international suffered a thigh injury that kept him out of the 2-1 win over Nottingham Forest earlier this month and stayed behind while the team were in Dubai to work on his fitness.
On Friday, Howe said: "I'd love him to beat the timescale given, but I don't see it currently.
"He's making good progress and he's pain free so I don't think there's any long term issues but it's just the time it takes for the muscle to heal.
"I think we're four weeks off, maybe slightly less, but he's making really good progress."
