Former England international Gary Lineker has heaped praise on Newcastle United’s central midfield duo Sean and Matty Longstaff.
The young brothers started the Magpies’ 1-1 draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers on Sunday and played rather well, although the older Longstaff was sent off late on for a heavy challenge on Ruben Neves.
Perhaps the sending off was harsh, but it certainly didn’t stop Lineker from praising the Newcastle duo: “These Longstaff lads can really play,” he wrote on his personal Twitter account.
“Trying to think of some other Geordie brothers that had reasonable careers….. The Charltons did alright, I suppose.”
OPINION
Sean’s sending off was a real blot on the Longstaff brothers’ copy book on Sunday, because prior to that moment the two central midfielders were performing excellently. It makes such a difference for Newcastle to have two quality, home-grown players manning the middle of the park, and the fact that the Longstaffs are actual top class players makes it even better. However, Sean did see red late on and that is a big blow for Newcastle moving forward. The only positive from that, though, is that Isaac Hayden will be returning from suspension ready for next weekend’s clash with West Ham United. He should then slot straight in for Sean and play alongside the younger Longstaff next time out. While the red card was immensely disappointing for Sean, it doesn’t take anything away from Lineker’s statement. The two brothers are both fantastic midfielders who can very much play. They’re not quite the Charltons, but then very few people are.
