Craig Hope believes 'underrated' 27-year-old could still be sold by Newcastle United before next season

This past week we have given a lot of column inches to Sean Longstaff after realising that the academy graduate is a far more important player than we ever gave him credit for.

Along with this realisation there has come talk about a new contract being offered to the 27-year-old deemed 'underrated' by Harvey Barnes.

Longstaff's current deal is set to expire in the summer leaving the club powerless to prevent him from discussing a pre-contract agreement with other clubs at the turn of the year.

However, it's now believed that Newcastle will trigger an extension clause in Longstaff's current deal keeping him around for another year.

Craig Hope believes Newcastle could still sell Sean Longstaff even if new deal is signed

Or not as the case may be, according to Daily Mail journalist Craig Hope who is not convinced that Longstaff will be here next season.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Hope suggested that the new deal will still be offered to Longstaff, but more so that the club can get some money from a sale rather than losing him for free next year.

“His one-year extension option will be invoked in January.

“What does that mean for Longstaff’s future? Well, it doesn’t necessarily mean he’s going to see out that year but it protects the club’s asset, the valuation of him.

“If you’re pushing me for an answer, I would expect to see movement on Longstaff going out of the club perhaps in the summer, given he would then only have 12 months to go.

“The club have a decision to make. Do they then reward him with a longer-term deal or is it time to sell? I think it might just be the latter. But in the short term, Sean Longstaff has shown his value and his worth in the first-team.”

We're not sure how to feel about losing Longstaff now

With Longstaff being a homegrown talent from Newcastle's academy it would be borderline criminal to let him leave for free given how much of a difference even a small fee for an academy player can make in terms of PSR these days.

After the summer's PSR issues, Newcastle surely wouldn't be so careless as to let a former academy player leave without receiving some form of compensation now.

Not long ago we'd have been quite happy with this plan, but after coming to terms with what it is that Longstaff brings to the table, and the fact that he's been our lucky charm this season, the enthusiasm over letting him go has died down.