As the takeover at Newcastle United edges ever closer, there’s plenty about what the new owners should do first. For me, the answer is simple – they must address the Matty Longstaff contract issue early doors.
Longstaff contract
Matthew Longstaff has enjoyed something of a breakout season this year on Tyneside, scoring his first ever goal for the club on his full debut against Manchester United back in October.
His performances in the middle of the park have been dogged and full of quality – if a little rough around the edges at times.
Now though, with his contract due to end at St James’ Park on June 30, there’s growing fears the youngster will leave the club.
Reportedly, he hasn’t been offered a new deal attractive enough to keep the youngster on Tyneside and, as a result, teams from around Europe have been sniffing around.
There’s even been talk of Milan offering the 19-year-old a contract if he leaves Newcastle this summer. Meanwhile, Dutch giants Ajax were another team mentioned.
If/when the new owners come in, offering Matty Longstaff a brand new shiny deal to secure his future on Tyneside is a great way to announce their intentions, and to get the fans even more on-side than they already are.
Other issues for the Newcastle owners to fix early on
As well as that, there will be a clamour for the new owners to a whole bunch of things in the early days – not least welcoming Wor Flags back to the ground.
With full co-operation and possibly even a helping hand from the club, Wor Flags could take their displays to the next level.
Also, fans will no doubt want to see the Sports Direct signage removed from the ground with haste.
To be honest, if it wasn’t a health and safety nightmare, they could probably sell the stadium out six or seven times over to watch them take the Sports Direct signs down.
Beyond that, the message is simple. Remove any remnants of the old regime, Lee Charnley included, and lets get this club back to where it should be.
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