- Newcastle set to fix academy pathway
- No European football will be catalyst for loan focus
- Having no Anderson repeats is imperative
A lot was made of Newcastle United’s pathway to the first team for academy talent last season, and in a rather negative sense, it must be said. Eddie Howe was defiantly reluctant in handing out opportunities to young players, even when it seemed there was no other option but to do so.
The second leg of the round of 16 UEFA Champions League tie against Qarabag was the most obvious example. 6-1 up after the first leg, and a mightily hectic schedule coming up for the regular first-teamers.
Yet, Howe barely rotated at all. Leo Shahar was the only youngster to be handed any game time, and he only received the final three minutes of the 90 at that. This has left many wondering what the point of the heavy academy investment really is if the manager simply won’t provide the pathway to first-team opportunities.
There has been a call for change, and the murmurings from inside the club would suggest we may well see that next season. And, interestingly enough, it could be the lack of European football that really allows those young players to break into senior football, according to Chris Waugh.
The loan market imperative
The lack of European adventure next season actually signals even less prosperity for Newcastle’s academy prospects on the surface.
Fewer games to play, fewer squad places available and a greater onus on the established players to play most of the minutes – all of that is true; there is no disputing that.
But the one thing that may mean for the Magpies’ youngsters is that the club is forced to place a greater focus on making the most of loans.
Whilst loaning the youngsters out isn’t exactly the all-singing, all-dancing solution to the lack of game time, given – in fact, it actually is a continuation of that issue – it will allow some much-needed senior experience that could actually endear them to Howe in the long term.
Howe is known to be a manager who favours proven players, hence his reluctance to give young players opportunities.
If the high-ceiling players coming through can go elsewhere and prove they have the ability, it may well afford more chances when they return.
Shahar, Sean Neave and Alex Murphy are the three players who have been most involved with the first-team squad this season and could all be on the list of those the club are looking to loan out this summer.
Newcastle make loan staffing changes
The poorly vetted loans handed out to young talent have been a rather prominent gripe among the fanbase for some time.
Shola Ameobi hasn’t exactly covered himself in glory in the ‘loan manager’ role, and countless exciting young players have disappeared following underwhelming loan moves.
But the club has already been proactive on the staffing front in that area of the club. Ameobi’s role has been moved to a more ambassadorial outlook, and the Magpies are set to recruit a new loan manager ahead of the new season.
That aligns with the determination to get the most out of the academy and suggests there will be a more cohesive focus on finding the right moves to further development, rather than just sending players out to any old club.
No Anderson repeats
The biggest thing for the club is making sure that situations like that of Elliot Anderson don’t repeat themselves.
Newcastle sold Anderson for £35m for PSR purposes and had to watch him thrive for a year at Nottingham Forest and become one of the Premier League’s best midfielders, and now could have to stomach Forest making a £75m profit on their own academy graduate.
The club are adamant that that sort of situation cannot arise again and that more must be done to ensure young players don’t feel they have to leave the club to progress their career.
That sentiment starts properly this summer, and the youth pathway looks set to be fixed in a big way as the Magpies look to realise their ambitions.
