The Dutchman picked up the injury on global duty with the Netherlands on Saturday, falling awkwardly after plucking the ball from the air against Kazakhstan.
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The second choice keeper, Karl Darlow, has a foot injury.
It was an extremely unlucky injury for Krul and Newcastle.
The extent of Krul’s injury will not be known until after he undergoes scans, and he took to Twitter to thank his fans for their support.
And Harper, a former Newcastle goalkeeper himself, has wished the 27-year-old all the best, while also joking about his and Stoke stopper Shay Given’s ‘dodgy knees’. Ironically, he was playing only because Holland’s first-choice goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen had to pull out during the warm-up.
Holland boss Danny Blind, speaking shortly after the weekend’s game, seemed convinced Krul is set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines.
Freddie Woodman is on-loan at Crawley Town and could be recalled, although clubs are normally granted the option of making an emergency signing outside the transfer window when a goalkeeper is injured. The Chronicle reported that he said: “It looks like a bad injury”.
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Newcastle head coach Steve McClaren is still without a win in eight Premier League matches since taking over, form which has left his side propping up the division ahead of Sunday’s visit of Norwich City to St James’ Park. Elliot is now providing cover for the Republic of Ireland squad following Shay Given’s injury against Germany last week.
