Eddie Howe might just be earmarking one of Newcastle United’s academy stars for a bright future on Tyneside.
Newcastle United have had to rely a lot on their academy this season due to their injuries. We have seen Lewis Miley become a regular in midfield, and he has been outstanding at the age of 17.
But he is not the only youngster who Eddie Howe has used. His bench has been filled with academy players for a long time, one of which has been Amadou Diallo.
The 20-year-old winger made his competitive debut earlier this season, coming off the bench during the 4-1 win over Chelsea. Diallo was one of three debutants that day, with Alex Murphy and Michael Ndiweni also coming on.
Since then, Diallo has not featured. But he has been in the Newcastle senior squad for five matches this season, and he is someone who Eddie Howe is a big fan of.
Eddie Howe ‘really likes’ Amadou Diallo
That is according to the Athletic’s Chris Waugh, who has been speaking about Amadou Diallo on the latest episode of Pod On The Tyne.
“Eddie Howe has been looking at Newcastle’s youth setup to see who might be able to basically populate the bench,” he said.
“Against Chelsea in November, he gave three or four debuts off the bench for the Under-21s because of the lack of players that he has. There are certain players that he rates within that.
“Amadou Diallo is someone he really likes, the wide forward. He’s been in and around the squad.”
Shame Diallo has not been given more chances at Newcastle
Given the fact that Howe clearly sees something in Diallo, it is a shame that he was not used more earlier this season.
His one appearance came in the aforementioned win over Chelsea, but he was only on the pitch for a few minutes. If I remember rightly, I think he only touched the ball once.
Newcastle have been massively short of attacking options over the past couple of months, so it would have been an opportunity for Diallo to show what he is capable of as an impact sub.
However, that opportunity did not come his way, and it is difficult to envision him featuring during the rest of the season with Jacob Murphy and Harvey Barnes due back from injury.
But Howe is a fan of Diallo, and hopefully that means he will get more chances at senior level over the next 12 months.
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