Newcastle United have emphatically stormed into European competition this season, and with simply two factors separating the Magpies from fourth-place Tottenham Hotspur, who’ve performed two video games further, Champions League soccer gracing St. James’s Park subsequent time period is a really actual chance.
The defence is oiled and imperious, the midfield cohesive and sturdy, up prime, £63m summer season signing Alexander Isak is providing glimpses of world-class dominance regardless of his season being closely hampered by damage.
Isak has scored six objectives from simply seven begins within the Premier League, together with three strikes from his previous two matches, and the Swede appears to be like to be an actual drive on the tip of supervisor Eddie Howe’s system, prolific and hailed as “a unicorn for his combination of measurement & technical means” by radio presenter Kev Lawson.
His damage document is regarding, nevertheless, with the 23-year-old lacking 13 aggressive matches for the Toon to this point, and whereas 31-year-old ahead Callum Wilson has been a gradual presence up entrance in his absence, scoring seven objectives from 19 league outings this time period, Howe can be trying to unearth a strike companion for his document signing to solidify the frontline for years to return.
Newcastle’s affluence may immediate technical director Dan Ashworth to delve into the switch market but once more, however with such a potent ahead already adopting the talismanic position, turning to youth prospect Michael Ndiweni may very well be the route to move down.
Who’s Michael Ndiweni?
Ndiweni took U18 soccer by storm final season, scoring a laudable 13 objectives from 17 appearances, together with from 13 outings within the U18 Premier League and three from three within the FA Youth Cup.
This season, fortunes have been much less fruitful because the 19-year-old has stepped as much as U21 stage, with simply two strikes and one help from 12 matches within the Premier League 2, although with simply 5 begins to his identify he’s making regular progress and can hope to harness his “deadly” high quality quickly – as hailed by Ciaran Kelly.
Together with his “spectacular” begin to life with the Magpies, as remarked by journalist Matty Hewitt, solely set to broaden as he continues to acclimatise to life with the U21s, he’ll certainly be pushing on Howe’s door for a senior debut, having already educated with the first-team on a number of events.
Hailed as a “actual risk” by Mark Carruthers, Ndiweni may not discover a place in Howe’s plans this time period but when he’s to proceed his improvement and notch up his objective risk with the U21s he may nicely discover a place within the reckoning for competition at one of many Premier League’s most fun forces.
Certainly, with the damage data of each Isak and Wilson, there may be each probability his first-team goals change into a actuality in brief time.
