Former Newcastle United player Lewis Gibson was urged to leave the club last summer by a coach amid allegations of bullying and racism made against Under-23s manager Peter Beardsley, according to the Daily Mail.
The newspaper claim that centre-back Gibson, 17, was advised to quit for Everton in a deal that could rise to £6million because he had “become so unhappy”.
The Mail cite the teenager’s case as Magpies icon Beardsley, 56, prepares to meet the club hierarchy on Monday when the allegations and evidence will be put to him as he faces the prospect of losing his job if they are proved.
It is said that Yasin Ben El-Mhanni lodged an official complaint against Beardsley, who is deeply unpopular among many of the players and staff at the academy, to the club.
Five Under-23s players have given witness statements in support of El-Mhanni, who has made allegations of bullying against the former England forward.
The report also states that the Magpies will hold talks with the 22-year-old, who joined the club on a free transfer back in 2016 and has made two senior appearances, about his grievance towards Beardsley.
OPINION
These are grave and shocking allegations against Beardsley that have left him fighting for his job. The former England international and Newcastle captain is in his second spell as a coach at the club, where he began his post-playing career in 2001, and remains as one of the most notable figures on or off the pitch at the north-east giants. It is important to state that, at this stage, these are allegations and that nothing has been proven against Beardsley. In 2003 he and academy director Kenny Wharton were cleared by the Premier League after allegations of bullying were made by youth-team players James Beaumont, Ross Gardner and Neale McDermott, the son of former Newcastle assistant manager, Terry. If Beardsley is found guilty of these new allegations of bullying and racism, his reputation will be in tatters and it is difficult to see him getting another plum coaching job in football.