Keegan likened the Newcastle United midfielder – who struck his second pre-season goal in Wednesday's 2-2 draw with PSV Eindhoven – to a cross between bargain buys Robert Lee and Paul Bracewell, two of the most influential signings of his first spell as manager.

Lee was described by Keegan has his best "pound for pound" signing at £700,000, while Bracewell was picked up for a meagre £250,000 from Sunderland.

And the 21-year-old – signed from Liverpool last month for an undisclosed fee – has already impressed Keegan, who believes the box-to-box player can belie his modest fee and prove a key player at St James's Park over the coming seasons.

"We might fetch four or five signings in here, but it might be a lesser-known player who makes the biggest impact," Keegan told the Gazette.

"Danny Guthrie's got a lot of energy. He's got a good eye for a goal, and he can certainly pass that ball.

"He'll just get better. He'll get better the more games he plays, the more experience he gets, and the more we put ahead of him.

"No disrespect to the lads that played, because they did terrifically well, but when you get someone like Michael Owen, Oba or Viduka up there, he'll run off them.

"He'll certainly, as people have seen, finish if he gets a chance. I've seen that in training."