Duo travelling to Newcastle United after Ross Wilson transfer plan made public - FIFA rules will block move
Newcastle United transfers: Two youngsters are set to undergo trials at Newcastle United after travelling from Gambia.
Newcastle United are set to hand youngsters Omar Marong and Alieu Saine an opportunity to impress at the club’s academy.
The TMT Academy youngsters have been invited to undergo trials at Newcastle after impressing for the Gambia Under-17s national team at the WAFU A U-17 tournament in September.
Midfielder Marong captained the Gambia side to win the tournament, while Saine impressed with four goals. Sources in Gambia have reported the duo have travelled to England to undergo trials at Newcastle.
The pair will spend a month on Tyneside where they will be assessed further. FIFA rules will block Newcastle from signing either player permanently until they turn 18.
Coach Ebrima Sonko of the Delphlyx Scouting Agency helped facilitate the trial.
He said: “The month-long trial presents an important opportunity for the two TMT talents to take another step in their football development and showcase their abilities on a bigger stage.”
The trials come after Newcastle went public in their attempt to expand their recruitment network into Africa with the appointment of an African scout analyst.
Last month, the club stated it was looking to appoint someone to help identify and scout prospective players across multiple levels of African football.
The job description states the successful candidate will ‘proactively identify players who could meet Newcastle United’s recruitment strategy, playing philosophy and squad requirements'.
Newcastle have had plenty of success signing African players over the years, though they have not signed a player directly from an African club. Shola Ameobi (Nigeria), Cheick Tiote (Ivory Coast), Papiss Cisse (Senegal), Demba Ba (Senegal), Obafemi Martins (Nigeria), Mohamed Diame (Senegal), Habib Beye (Senegal), Chancel Mbemba (DR Congo), Christian Atsu (Ghana) and Lomana LuaLua (DR Congo) are just some well-known former Newcastle players who also represented African countries on the international stage.
African players currently on the books at Newcastle at first-team level are Yoane Wissa (DR Congo) and Bazoumana Toure (Ivory Coast). Afner Cá (Guinea-Bissau) and Ousmane Diabaté (Guinea) are youngsters also contracted to the club.
Now it is up to Wilson and his scouting team to try and unearth the next big African star for Newcastle.