It wasn’t publicly announced by the club, but Newcastle United’s Academy recruitment drive continued over the summer as Jayden Kouossu and Lesecond Yeutembip signed from West Brom and Charlton, respectively.
The pair of 14-year-olds have been quick to make themselves known in their short stint in the north east, with recent news boding well for the future talents in the early stage of their careers.
As revealed on the pair’s social media accounts this week, our Academy duo have been called up to the England Under-15s squad for the very first time after impressing on Tyneside.
Kouossu in particular is regarded as one of the country’s top young midfield talents. His first four games for our U15s saw him find the net an astonishing nine times, adding three assists to his tally for good measure.
Yeutembip is a centre-back who came from a well-regarded Charlton Academy that has produced a number of Premier League players over the years such as Ezri Konsa, Joe Gomez, Jermaine Defoe, two fellow Mags in Scott Parker and Jonjo Shelvey along with a current Newcastle United star in Nick Pope.
After years of struggling to build from the ground up it is refreshing to see Toon finally start to see some progression through the academy set-up with the duo the latest of seven who have earned national call-ups.
Agemate Michael Mills appears to have a particularly promising future, creating some excitement when we secured the teenager from Port Vale last summer after a successful trial – while Sam Alabi has joined in a call-up for U15s.
Leo Shahar and Trevan Sanusi have been awarded for their performances with an inclusion at U-16 level, not forgetting Lewis Miley playing with the U21s. The future appears to hold some bright sparks for Newcastle.
Then to senior level, we’ve seen debut England call-ups for Anthony Gordon, Tino Livramento and Lewis Hall over the past 12 months, proving St James’ Park is no longer a place where young English talent can be ignored.
It’s a theme that’s continuing at all levels and a positive sign for any would-be signings who have ambitions to play for England.