Thomas Allan and Lewis Cass are the two U-23’s deemed ‘capable’ of stepping up to Steve Bruce’s senior squad according to the Chronicle.
This comes from their latest ‘exclusive’ which looks at Bruce’s plan to have a more hands on role at Academy level following Redfearn’s resignation, but also names the TWO under-23’s who have stood out over the past few months.
Allan, 20, is a Newcastle-born winger who has 4 goals and an assist in 9 appearances this season, while Cass is a versatile 19-year-old defender who’s captained the reserves this season.
Here’s a snippet from the Chronicle’s latest piece on the U-23’s:
‘Ideally, Bruce would like to have three or four youngsters at a time pushing for recognition for the senior side.
‘At the moment only winger Thomas Allan and Lewis Cass are regarded as youngsters who would be capable of stepping into the senior squad.‘
This is positive to hear from Allan and Cass’ perspective, proving they’ve caught the eye of Bruce over the past few months, however it doesn’t say much for our U-23 set up as a whole when just TWO youngsters are deemed capable of stepping up.
We’ve got a few talents, however their progress has been limited for one reason or another, whether it be due to poor loans, managers coming and going or the fact they just aren’t developing quickly enough.
Elias Sorensen is a worrying example. He scored over 20 goals last season and was even tipped to be included in Rafa Benitez’s senior squad at one stage, yet he’s now struggling to get a game for League Two side Carlisle United.
Hopefully we get a new u-23 boss in place as soon as possible and start seeing more from our second string – both individually and as a team – after yet another defeat last night.
