Young Newcastle United goalkeeper Freddie Woodman’s lack of Premier League experience is why he hasn’t had more of a chance in the first team, according to The Chronicle.
The newspaper claims that manager Rafael Benitez counts the 22-year-old’s lack of top flight games against him and is part of the reason why he remains behind Karl Darlow as first choice Martin Dubravka’s primary back up.
Woodman does have the advantage over Republic of Ireland international Rob Elliot, who has been told he can leave the Magpies, but the highly-rated academy product has still struggled for game time this season.
The ‘keeper’s contract is set to expire at the end of next season, meaning that a loan spell is absolutely vital for him next time out. Otherwise Newcastle risk losing him for nothing due to the shortage of opportunities for him.
OPINION
It would be a real shame if Woodman ends up leaving Newcastle having never really been given a shot in the first team. He’s always been incredibly highly regarded and has excelled at every youth level for both club and country, but Benitez has seemingly never been ready to take a risk on him during his time in charge. It must be incredibly frustrating for the young man, who is working well in training and being a good professional for no real reward. He’s been after a loan move in the last two transfer windows but has seen his plans scuppered each time. With the way things have been going it would be no surprise to see him move on from the Magpies when his contract expires. Hopefully, though, he gets a loan spell next season which would help avoid that happening. As for the Premier League experience thing, how does Benitez ever expect that to change if he doesn’t play him? You can see it from the manager’s point of view, as well, but it’s a bit of a Catch 22 situation for Woodman.
