Freddie Woodman returns to Newcastle United

The Newcastle United goalkeeper – who has spent the past two seasons on loan at Swansea City – will start pre-season training at the club later this week.

Woodman, however, knows that Martin Dubravka is ahead of him in the pecking order – and he’s keen for more first-team football.

The club must decide whether to keep Woodman at St James’s Park as back-up, loan him out again – or sell him.

Swansea, beaten in the Championship play-off final, want Woodman back on loan, while there’s understood to be interest in the 24-year-old from a number of Premier League clubs.

Woodman has long been tracked by Arsenal, and he could be mentioned in talks between the two clubs over Joe Willock, who is wanted back at Newcastle by head coach Steve Bruce after a successful half-season loan at St James’s Park.

For his part, Woodman – who spent some of the off-season in South Wales – has spoken about his keenness to return to Swansea.

"I hope this isn't the last game I play in a Swansea shirt,” said Woodman after the club’s play-off defeat to Brentford. "The main thing is to sort out my next step. If that's in a Swansea shirt, then brilliant, but if it's not, I have to crack on – and that's football.”

Woodman – who joined the club as a teenager when his father Andy was goalkeeping coach under Alan Pardew – has a year left on his deal at Newcastle.

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