Matty Longstaff could be in line to make his competitive Newcastle United debut against Leicester City in midweek, according to The Athletic journalist Chris Waugh.
The youngster impressed Steve Bruce during preseason, but has yet to feature for the Magpies so far this season.
But Waugh believes that could change when United face the Foxes in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday.
Writing in a Q&A for The Athletic, he said: “I hope it won’t be a team full of youngsters but I can see the likes of Matty Longstaff getting a game, yes.”
OPINION
There’s a growing buzz surrounding Longstaff at the moment, and its easy to see why. For one thing, he is the brother of last year’s breakout starlet, Sean, who has established himself as one of the Magpies’ finest players since his step up to senior football in December. Last season he averaged a pass completion rate of 80.9%, as well as losing the ball just 0.7 times per game, as per Whoscored. If Matty can come anywhere near that kind of form then he will be a success, and the early signs from preseason are that he has more than enough ability to do so. It may have only been a friendly, but his strike against St. Etienne at St. James’ Park over the summer was truly spectacular – a curling, rasping effort that would have had the best goalkeepers in the world scrambling. Easing him in with a Carabao Cup match seems like a smart move, and hopefully it can be the first step on a great journey for the starlet.
