Newcastle United academy graduate now linked with move to Manchester United as PNE contract due to expire in summer

There was a time when Newcastle United thought they had the next big thing on their hands in the form of young Freddie Woodman, the academy goalkeeper who looked like he'd go on to big things.

Ultimately, that's not how it worked out for the son of the former Newcastle goalkeeping coach, now manager of Newcastle's FA Cup opponents, Bromley.

Whether it was a case of his dad over-hyping him or what, we don't know, but Woodman had six different loan moves in his nine years with the Magpies, only making nine senior appearances for Newcastle.

Woodman left Newcastle in 2022 and moved to Championship side Preston North End where things started to look up for him.

Getty Images

Freddie Woodman has been excellent at Preston North End

Indeed, this season, Woodman has kept 13 clean sheets in the Championship taking his total to 44 in 138 games for the Lillywhites.

That has apparently caught the attention of Manchester United according to a report in The Sun.

Man United are on the hunt for a new third-choice 'keeper and have Woodman in their sights with the 28-year-old's contract set to expire this summer.

We're not convinced moving to Man United would be a good career move for Woodman

We can't tell if this would be a step up or a sideways step for Woodman to be honest.

Yes, he'd be moving into the Premier League, and I suppose he'd be joining one of the biggest clubs in the world, but Man United are a mess and are miles off living up to what their history demands.

He'd also be the third choice in a pap team. It may not have worked out how we all wanted for Woodman at Newcastle, but surely he's still good enough to be someone's first choice. Leeds United are desperate for a new 'keeper, he can't be worse than Illan Meslier, can he?