Newcastle managing director Lee Charnley has claimed that he wants at least one academy player breaking into the first-team every season.
Speaking to The Chronicle, Charnley has placed an emphasis on youth development, following the rise of Matty and Sean Longstaff this year.
Twitter: NUFC want one player in the first team from the Academy every year, says Lee Charnley.
https://t.co/NF7CtCIGK8 (@ChronicleNUFC)
These Newcastle fans reacted to his comments…
Lack of ambition…
Twitter: @ChronicleNUFC But little to no investment? The comment about ‘best in region’ is just sad and truly represents how… https://t.co/mGFLQ9PuY6 (@Johnboy25)
Invest!
Twitter: @ChronicleNUFC You need to invest!! (@MaddisonCD)
Out of date…
Twitter: @ChronicleNUFC Then you need to Invest in the academy, our academy is probably 10 years out of date (@Cosseycj)
Asking for a lot…
Twitter: @ChronicleNUFC He’s asking for a lot there if they are not going to invest (@Nagser82)
Wonder why…
Twitter: @ChronicleNUFC I wonder why? (@viz1234567)
Zero investment…
Twitter: @ChronicleNUFC With zero investment (@Robbiewad79)
READ NEWCASTLE VERDICT
Newcastle have struggled to produce Premier League level players from their academy in recent years, despite the Longstaff brothers now emerging. They are the first to break through since Paul Dummett, who is currently a regular in the squad.
However, it will take a lot of effort, and a manager willing to put faith in the youngsters, to bring one through every season. If the quality simply is not there, you cannot bring them through. This means that Newcastle may need to look at investing in young players and try to bring talent from across the country to Tyneside.
