Newcastle United manager Steve Bruce has indicated that he is confident that Sean Longstaff will remain with the club next season amid the interest from Manchester United. The 21-year-old made just nine appearances for the Magpies last term but his potential has apparently caught the eye of the Red Devils, who are said to be preparing a £30m bid.
Speaking to reporters, Bruce stressed that the Magpies are not looking at the prospect of selling their young players and he is confident that Longstaff will continue to serve the club for the forthcoming campaign, he said:“That won’t happen. I’m very confident. We don’t want to sell our best young players, that’s for sure.”
Meanwhile, Magpies owner Mike Ashley has recently shown ambition with the £40m purchase of Joelinton from Hoffenheim and Bruce has acknowledged that he has been pleased with the proceedings to date, he added: “We had a conversation which will obviously stay with us but that can only be a positive thing. I hope it continues. He wants the club to go forward. If he didn’t he wouldn’t have been here today I’d have thought. Of course, he wants more than just finishing 17th. You can’t say anyone at Newcastle is just happy to be 17th.”
The Magpies have lost key players in the form of Ayoze Perez and Salomon Rondon upfront this summer and the club are working to solve the concern ahead of the new season. Joelinton has been bought from Hoffenheim to provide a commanding physical presence upfront and it remains to be seen whether he can quickly adapt to the demands of the Premier League.
The Tyneside outfit have managed to stay clear of the Premier League drop zone in the past two seasons despite finding themselves in trouble at the midway stage of those campaigns. The fans will be hoping that the club can avoid a repeat of the same next term.