One thing Newcastle United have been consistently doing well since the PIF-backed takeover is finding exciting young talent.
Unfortunately, while the scouting team are great at finding said talent, it's convincing them to move to Newcastle that has often been the issue.
Newcastle have missed out on the likes of Arda Guler who went to Real Madrid, Dujuan Richards who opted for Chelsea, Andrey Santos who also went to Chelsea and Matheus Franca who went to Crystal Palace.
The Magpies were also reportedly interested in Leeds United youngster Archie Gray who had burst into the Leeds first-team and impressed last season, but Tottenham Hotspur eventually won the race for the Durham-born 18-year-old.
Now, though, reports suggest that Newcastle are keen to sign Gray's little brother Harry. The 15-year-old striker is also being watched by Arsenal, Spurs, Liverpool and of course, because he has a pulse - Chelsea.
Harry Gray is currently playing for Leeds' U18s and has bagged eight goals in 11 outings.
Set to turn 16 next month, Gray will soon have a big decision to make on his future, with The Boot Room reporting that Spurs are confident that Harry will come to join his brother.
Newcastle have seen off the big boys before when it comes to signing promising youngsters as they won the race to sign Trevan Sanusi from Birmingham, so while it may look like things are against the Magpies, there's always a chance.
Being originally from Harrogate, Gray might fancy a move further north rather than heading to the big smoke, although that clearly wasn't the case for Archie.
It's definitely one to keep an eye on as Newcastle continue their hunt for top young talent to mould into first-team players ... that they will have to sell because of PSR!
PL | GD | PTS | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
Liverpool
|
12 | 16 | 31 |
2 |
Manchester City
|
12 | 5 | 23 |
3 |
Chelsea
|
12 | 9 | 22 |
4 |
Arsenal
|
12 | 9 | 22 |
5 |
Brighton
|
12 | 5 | 22 |
6 |
Tottenham Hotspur
|
12 | 14 | 19 |
7 |
Nottingham Forest
|
12 | 2 | 19 |
8 |
Aston Villa
|
12 | 0 | 19 |
9 |
Fulham
|
12 | 0 | 18 |
10 |
Newcastle United
|
12 | 0 | 18 |
11 |
Brentford
|
12 | 0 | 17 |
12 |
Manchester United
|
12 | 0 | 16 |
13 |
Bournemouth
|
12 | -1 | 15 |
14 |
West Ham United
|
12 | -4 | 15 |
15 |
Everton
|
12 | -7 | 11 |
16 |
Leicester
|
12 | -8 | 10 |
17 |
Wolves
|
12 | -8 | 9 |
18 |
Ipswich
|
12 | -10 | 9 |
19 |
Crystal Palace
|
12 | -7 | 8 |
20 |
Southampton
|
12 | -15 | 4 |