Benitez in Toon with kid

Freddie Woodman laughs off any suggestion being the godson of England boss Gareth Southgate puts him on the fast track to stardom for his country.

But the Kilmarnock loan keeper hopes regular text messages from Champions League- winning gaf fer Rafa Benitez mean he’s not far off it for his parent club.

The Newcastle manager sent Woodman north in the January transfer window with the 20-year-old going on to usurp first- choice keeper Jamie MacDonald.

And while Benitez has had his hands full trying to seal the Championship title, he’s still been keeping an eye on the Englishman.

Woodman said: “Rafa texts me quite often to see how I’m doing and how I’m performing at the weekends.

“I stay in contact with him quite a lot and also with the other lads down there. They’re always asking after me and it’s a good thing.

“My long-term aim is to be the first-choice keeper at Newcastle. I set a lot of goals and that’s one of them.

“But I know what I’m doing now matters. Rafa said to me before I went away I’d need to get loan games, more experience and ultimately play men’s football.

“I feel like I’m doing that now. Once I go back I can say I’ve done it and maybe push for No.1. It’s actually quite surreal to tell your mates Rafa Benitez is texting you and keeping tabs on you.”

Despite replacing fans’ favourite MacDonald in goal Woodman insists the 30-year- old has been fully supportive of him.

He said: “It was difficult coming into a club with an established goalkeeper. I’ve had to win over a lot of fans.

“But Jambo has been topdrawer with me and really helped me to progress.

“He has given me a lot of good tips and tel ls me about certain players before I have to face them, such as their best attributes and the type of finishes they’re likely to attempt.”