ALAN Shearer is confident Sebastien Bassong will be fit enough to return to Newcastle’s starting line-up for Saturday’s crucial relegation encounter at Stoke.

Bassong, who injured his groin in last month’s 3-1 defeat to Arsenal, failed a fitness test ahead of his side’s 2- 0 home defeat to Chelsea.

In his absence, Argentinian centre-half Fabricio Coloccini produced another errorstrewn display, with his failure to clear the ball at the start of the second half leading to Frank Lampard’s allimportant opener.

With Stoke sure to offer a sustained aerial threat at the Britannia Stadium, Shearer will be reluctant to stick with Coloccini in five days time.

And having watched Bassong in light training at the end of last week, the new Newcastle boss is confident the France Under-21 international will be fit enough to feature against the Potters.

“Bassong was very, very close,” said Shearer, in the wake of his first defeat as a manager. “He had a fitness test (on Saturday morning) in which he was nearly there – 85 to 90 per cent – and we thought of risking him. But for the sake of common sense, we realised we had seven other games and it wasn’t all about today.”

With Habib Beye having slotted in at centre-half against Chelsea, Shearer could field an entirely newlook defence if Steven Taylor is also passed fit for the weekend.

Taylor, who sustained an ankle injury against the Gunners, was ruled out of the Chelsea game on Friday, but while he is yet to return to full training, the 23-year-old could yet be involved against Stoke.

“Taylor was a little bit further away,” said Shearer. “He was never a serious option but, like Bassong, we’re hoping he’ll be available for selection next week.”

Peter Lovenkrands is less likely to feature in the Potteries, however, following a serious injury on Saturday.

The Denmark international injured his back in a clash with Chelsea midfielder Florent Malouda, and while the incident appeared innocuous at the time, he required the aid of an oxygen mask as he was stretchered from the field.

He was transferred to hospital immediately, and is likely to remain under close observation for the next two or three days.

“He got a very, very nasty knock on his back, and was actually struggling to breathe,” said Shearer. “We had to put the breathing apparatus onto him when he got into the dressing room.

“Thankfully, he went off to hospital and they stabilised him. Hopefully, he will be okay.”