Newcastle United 16y/o spotted with Eddie Howe & Ross Wilson at training ground as summer signing returns
A depleted Newcastle United squad have been in training in preparation for the return to Premier League action at Brighton on Saturday (3pm kick-off).
Newcastle United have had an eventful international break with the appointment of Ross Wilson as sporting director from Nottingham Forest.
The Magpies players on international duty have also made their mark with Anthony Gordon and Nick Woltemade scoring for England and Germany, respectively.
Bruno Guimaraes grabbed two assists for Brazil while Joelinton also featured. Dan Burn was involved for England as World Cup qualification was secured and Sandro Tonali started twice for Italy in the wins against Estonia and Israel.
But it was a disappointing break for Anthony Elanga as Sweden’s World Cup qualification hopes took a big dent with two defeats against Switzerland and Kosovo. Elanga didn’t start either match and was overheard criticising the side’s system in an x-rated outburst in the tunnel.
Jon Dahl Tomasson was then sacked as Sweden manager less than 24 hours after the defeat to Kosovo.
Newcastle’s international players now prepare to link-up with the squad again ahead of the trip to Brighton. But while they’ve been away, the hard work has continued behind the scenes this week.
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Newcastle United summer signing set to return
Jacob Ramsey is expected to be back involved for Newcastle on Saturday, having trained with the first team during the international break.
Ramsey, who joined Newcastle from Aston Villa for £39million in August, suffered an ankle injury in the 0-0 draw against Leeds that has sidelined him for seven weeks.
Speaking ahead of the international break, Magpies head coach Eddie Howe said: “Yeah, he's good. JJ's trained.
“I just made the decision that I didn't want to risk him [against Nottingham Forest] and potentially set him back again.
“So I wanted to give him the two weeks, the international break, to make sure he's ready for the next game.”
While Ramsey has been back involved, Newcastle remain without Yoane Wissa, Tino Livramento and Lewis Hall due to injury.
Added to the several key players missing due to international duty, Howe has had a depleted squad to work with over the past two weeks.
As a result, several academy players have been drafted in to bolster numbers.
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16-year-old midfielder spotted with Eddie Howe & Ross Wilson
In images released by the club showing new sporting director Ross Wilson at the training ground on Tuesday, one Newcastle academy player was spotted sitting next to Wilson, Howe and performance director James Bunce at Darsley Park.
16-year-old midfielder Sam Alabi has risen through the ranks at Newcastle’s academy after joining from Oldham Athletic two years ago. The teenager has broken into the Under-21s set-up this season and has been capped by England at Under-16 and Under-17 level.
Earlier this year, a popular social media account called Future Ballers shared a video of Alabi in action, drawing comparisons between the young Newcastle midfielder and France World Cup winner Paul Pogba.
Alabi is rated highly behind the scenes at Newcastle and his opportunity working with the first team is a testament to that. The midfielder was also alongside 19-year-old left-back Dylan Charlton from the Under-21s.