Eddie Howe predicts Lewis Miley will break into Newcastle United’s first-team this season
Newcastle United coach Eddie Howe has predicted that Lewis Miley, Newcastle’s United’s 17-year-old midfield prodigy, will break into the club’s first-team this season after his composed performance against Chelsea in Atlanta.
Miley, who was born in Stanley, Co Durham, made his senior debut for Newcastle in their final match of last season, becoming their youngest-ever player in the Premier League era and he has featured in every preseason fixture so far.
Advertisement
A tall, graceful and accomplished player, Miley did not look out of place alongside Sandro Tonali, the Italy international, in Newcastle’s 1-1 draw with Mauricio Pochettino’s team at the Mercedes Benz Stadium.
Howe will reject loan offers from other clubs for Miley and will instead keep him within Newcastle’s first-team pool.
“The plan has been consistent in my mind,” the coach said. “He will stay with us this season. There’s no thought of sending him on loan. For me he’s too young to be exposed to that at the moment. I think he needs to stay with his family and to train with us and to learn and develop around the players we have.
“I don’t think he’s surprised me because I’ve seen it for six months, including at the back end of last season, just how well he was developing and how strong he looked in the group. Physically is always the biggest test for someone so young but you’ve seen him today — he’s a very, very good athlete, he’s strong and a good size and he looks like he can handle the environment he’s in. The next step is to push him and develop him and I’m sure he’ll get minutes this year.”
Just as they do with Elliot Anderson, another product of the club’s academy, Newcastle understand they have a player on their hands. “We have felt that way for a while
Read on theathletic.com
