“Fearless" signing shocks Newcastle staff as Howe hails search for top talent
There's not been too much to shout and write home about in regards to Newcastle United's pre-season performances so far.
With just three goals scored and no wins (not that they are the point of pre-season), the upcoming Sela Cup games offer one last opportunity for us to build some big momentum heading into the 2025/26 Premier League campaign.
But one positive from the pre-season tour in Asia has been the performances of newly-signed youngster Park Seung-soo: just the latest youngster to join our much-improved pool of under-21 talent.
And his performances against both the K-League XI and Spurs haven't gone unnoticed, as Eddie Howe gave him some particular praise in a recent interview...
Howe heaps praise on Park Seung-soo
Speaking to the media upon the culmination of our tour of South Korea, Howe credited Park for his fearlessness and attitude after a pair of promising displays in front of his home crowds in South Korea.
Asked about the recruitment work done to secure the 18-year-old, along with his first impressions of the winger across training sessions and his first two outings, Howe spoke highly of him and our scouting network:
"Yeah I think we've got some really good scouts around the world," Howe said. "We're constantly looking at every league, trying to cover every league as detailed as we can."
"I think the work going into Park has been really good work. I’ve been really really impressed with him.”
“He’s coming into our training very quickly. Almost thrown into some game situations and I think he’s done really well.”
“It seems like he’s got a really great personality: he’s fearless and I can’t praise him enough for his impact in the two games and the training sessions.”
It's believed that, while the club did have high hopes for Park and hoped to see him progress gradually via our under-21 side, some staff have been shocked by just how good he's looked, both in training and his two cameos in Korea.
What next for the youngster?
Park, whose signing was confirmed earlier in the window, is set to enjoy a slightly different approach and career path compared to what we usually hand a youngster.
Where a player like Antonio Cordero is being loaned to K.V.C Westerlo in Belgium, Park will instead be kept in the North East to develop his talent.
This could include a cameo in the upcoming Sela Cup double header at St James’ Park against Espanyol and Atletico Madrid, which would be a good litmus test to try and find his current level.
At only 18-years-old, he’s made a fantastic first impression, and we can hope to see him make some domestic cup cameos in the near future before a full integration into the senior squad further down the line.
