Not just Lewis Hall - Second Newcastle United player hails 'father figure' Kieran Trippier

Kieran Trippier has been described as ‘like a second Dad’ by a Newcastle United team-mate as he prepares for the final game of his time as a Magpie at Fulham this weekend.

The former England international was the first signing made under United’s Saudi-led ownership in January 2022 and is widely recognised as the catalyst for the ambitious additions that followed as the likes of Bruno Guimaraes, Sven Botman and Alexander Isak all followed in his footsteps by moving to St James Park. After helping the Magpies to two Champions League qualifications and playing a part in ending the club’s 70-year wait for major domestic silverware with a Carabao Cup final win against Liverpool last season, Trippier confirmed he will bring a close to his time in black and white when his contract ends next month.

He leaves with the good wishes of everyone connected with Newcastle and one team-mate has given an insight into the invaluable support he has received from the former Atletico Madrid man. Full-back Harrison Ashby, who has just completed a loan spell at Bradford City and is expected to leave Newcastle this summer, revealed Trippier’s attitude towards training has inspired him during his own time on Tyneside and admitted he had been taken ‘under his wing’ by a player that will go down as a genuine Magpies legend.

He told the Yorkshire Post: “Tripps is more like a second Dad. I think as soon as I came in, he was kind of the one to put me under his wing. I think how I’ve learned a lot of my game really now is probably learning from Tripps. So, yes, that’s kind of what he is to me. You train with someone like Tripps every day and every day he’s the best trainer. So you kind of look at that and think: ‘well, where do I want to be when I’m 34, 35?’ And that’s kind of what I want to be. I think the biggest thing for me is just watching him every day.”

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