‘LONGSTAFFS MIGHT HAVE TO QUIT TOON’
BROTHERS Sean and Matty Longstaff have been told they might have to quit Newcastle to save their careers.
The warning comes from Alan Thompson, cousin of their father David, who has watched the pair grow up and play for their hometown club.
Thompson, 47, a former England international, can speak from experience – because when he was 20, the same age as Matty, he left Kevin Keegan’s Newcastle for regular football.
Newcastle face Manchester United at Old Trafford this evening with neither sibling having started a game since mid-january. What a contrast from last season when Matty scored his first Toon goal as the Magpies beat United at St
James’ Park, then struck again in the return fixture.
Thompson said: “I spoke to their dad, and there’s no doubt they are frustrated. I know what they are like – it must be killing them sitting on the bench or not even making the squad.”
On February 1, Steve Bruce signed Arsenal youngster Joe Willock on loan for the season – seen as a sign of how the Longstaff lads’ stock has fallen
Thompson added: “That’s why I left the club myself. I had Scott Sellars in front of me and could
not see the prospect of regular first-team football.”
Newcastle lad Thompson enjoyed huge success at Celtic after spells with Bolton and Aston Villa, but he admits that almost three decades after quitting the Toon, he still wonders what might have been.
He said: “If I could turn the clock back and write my own script, I’d have loved to rack up 250 games for Newcastle – it was gutwrenching to leave and know I’d never pull on the black and white stripes again.
“For Sean and Matty, there will come a time when their need to be playing becomes greater than their passion for Newcastle. They love the club but both have got their careers to think about.
“I know enough about them to predict they will turn into very good Premier League footballers. I hope it is with Newcastle – but in all honesty, I have my doubts.”