I’M A TIN OPENER
Toon apprentice could put me out of work says Trippier
KIERAN TRIPPIER has challenged Tino Livramento to nick his job for Newcastle and England.
The Toon right-back is out of the trip to Chelsea tonight with a calf injury and Livramento is set for at least a two-game run in the team.
The former Southampton star has had to be patient since signing for £30m last summer.
But he is ready to step up in the medium term, and even as soon as this summer if Bayern Munich renew their January interest in Trippier.
Asked about Livramento’s ability to succeed him for club and country, Trippier said: “Of course.
“If you ask Tino, that will be his aim and if you ask me, I’d want every player to feel the same way.
“If you’re not in the team, your aim and ambition should be to try to get into the team.
“To try to prove you’re better than the team-mate that you’re competing against. If you have that in your squad, I think you’ve got a healthy squad, you’ve got a good balance between being a good teammate and fighting for your place.”
England Under-21 star Livramento has been used at left-back but will play his preferred position at Stamford Bridge, where he was once their Academy Player of the Year.
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe said: “Naturally, when you’re training next to someone every day, little things they do will brush off on you.
“Certainly, Kieran has got qualities that Tino will adapt into his game and look at and think, ‘Is that something I can develop further?’
“Kieran is a really good talker about the game as well with his experiences, so I think all of those things will have been invaluable for Tino this year.
“Tino has shown all the qualities. He has been learning and developing behind the scenes.
“He’s been picking things up off Kieran and I’ve enjoyed seeing them both battle it out.”
Trippier will travel with the team, despite being injured, to help lead from the touchline.
Newcastle need to win games to mount a strong challenge for the European places.
And they have a massive FA Cup quarter-final at Manchester City this Saturday.
Trippier is hoping this season’s Champions League campaign will not be his only Euro challenge for the club. He added: “We’ve had the taste of it, we’ve got the squad to compete in Europe.
“We’ve just got to finish this season strongly. The highs last season were massive for us.
“We were consistent last season, a very difficult team to break down.
“The lows are probably the December month for me. I know I can do much better and hopefully I’ve turned a corner.”