Newcastle United boast some talented midfielders in their current squad who have cost them a fair amount of money over the past few years.
One of those players was not even signed as a midfielder but has since been converted by manager Eddie Howe. That man is Joelinton, who joined as a centre-forward for a then club-record £40m back in 2019.
Bruno Guimaraes is another the Magpies boast in the middle of the park. Now the club captain, he also cost them £40m including add-ons in January 2022 from Lyon. Sandro Tonali was another expensive buy, setting them back £55m from AC Milan in 2023.
There is another player, a homegrown star, who has become a trusting figure in midfield for Howe over the years. That man is Sean Longstaff.
Longstaff’s Newcastle career
27-year-old academy graduate Longstaff has become an important player for Howe in the midfield. He has racked up an impressive number of games for the Magpies, featuring 194 times for the club, scoring 16 times and grabbing ten assists.
The man currently in the dugout has been an influential figure in Longstaff’s career so far. Under the Newcastle boss, he has played 114 times finding the back of the net 11 times, registering seven assists. Last term in the Premier League, Longstaff was particularly efficient, contributing to eight goals, his best season yet.
21/22
14
818
1
22/23
41
3,142
7
23/24
46
3,649
10
24/25
12
635
0
Even now, amongst all this impressive talent in the midfield at St James’ Park, the Newcastle-born star is able to get minutes. He has started five times in the top flight, playing 422 minutes and nine games in total.
He was impressive in the Magpies’ superb 1-0 win at home against Arsenal. The North East outfit got over the line with an Alexander Isak goal. Longstaff worked incredibly hard in midfield to win seven out of ten ground duels and six from seven tackles, as per Sofascore.
There is no question that the Newcastle number 36 gives 100% every week for his boyhood club. With that being said, there is another homegrown midfielder who left over the summer, someone who could have ended up going on to be better than Longstaff.
The midfielder Newcastle sold
The player in question here is Nottingham Forest midfielder Elliot Anderson. Like Longstaff, the 21-year-old also came through the academy at St James’ Park, although left the club for £35m in the summer to avoid breaching the Premier League’s Profitability and Sustainability Rules.
He featured 55 times for his boyhood club, and his last two seasons at the club saw him become a more prominent player. Last term, Anderson played 21 times in the Premier League but did miss a large chunk of the season due to injury.
Since his big-money departure to the City Ground over the summer, the midfielder has thrived. Under the tutelage of Nuno Espirito Santo, the Forest number eight has played 10 games in the Premier League.
Impressively, he has three assists to his name so far, with two of those coming in the last two games, including a 3-1 win in the East Midlands derby against Leicester City.
Howe was full of praise for his former midfielder earlier in the season before Newcastle’s meeting with Forest in the Carabao Cup second round. He described the Magpies academy graduate as an “outstanding” footballer, praising the “versatility” he can offer.
Although it seemed like they had to sell Anderson to comply with Premier League rules, the Magpies may well regret moving the midfielder on. The Forest midfielder could certainly have replaced Longstaff in the middle of the park, given his versatility and quality that Howe clearly appreciates.
He has made impressive progress for the Midlands club already, and it could be a sale that, in the coming years, the Magpies look back on and wish they had never made.
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