Many Newcastle United fans have reacted to a tweet that was recently posted by Times journalist Martin Hardy which shared an update on the future of Matty Longstaff.
In his tweet, Hardy declared that Longstaff ‘looks set to sign a new contract at Newcastle’ and this came after the reporter recently wrote an article for The Times in which he elaborated on this update concerning the 20-year-old midfielder.
As per The Times, Longstaff ‘had been expected to leave after his contract at St. James’ Park ended last month.’ The midfielder was linked with a move to Serie A side Udinese, who were said to be leading the race for the player’s signature ‘with a move that would have brought Newcastle £400k in compensation,’ while newly-promoted Leeds United were also reportedly interested in signing the player, however, it now appears as though the £4.5m-rated man may not depart from the North East club after all.
After Hardy shared this update on Longstaff via a tweet, a lot of Toon supporters replied to the journalist’s post to share their thoughts on this news.
Exclusive: Matty Longstaff looks set to sign a new contract at Newcastle. Full story @TimesSport
— Martin Hardy (@mhardysport) August 19, 2020
Many of the Newcastle United fans who replied to this tweet reacted positively to this update on Longstaff, with some declaring that they believe this is ‘great news.’
Great news – I suspect the connections between Udinese and Watford, and the latters subsequent relegation may have played a key part.
— Graeme Clark (@GraemeClark2) August 20, 2020
Great news for him and more for Nufc he has a bright future hopefully with us
— Terence Ross (@nufctel) August 20, 2020
Like a new signing #NUFC https://t.co/jNEuJzNdLh
— Pasty Guy (@Joeeeeeee_96) August 20, 2020
Wow. That’s massive news. Fingers crossed. #NUFC https://t.co/bxMvHhXk69
— Adam (@AdamBeckett09) August 19, 2020
Get in! Brilliant news ? #nufc https://t.co/IhUT1zPSEW
— Jack ?? (@jchaytor16) August 19, 2020
Fantastic news if correct. Nice to have some at least! #nufc https://t.co/wdlR3Nennd
— Paul C (@The17thSecond) August 19, 2020
Probably our best signing of the summer, Matty has a big future ahead of him ?
— Martin (@WASNAPPER) August 20, 2020
However, not all of the replies to this tweet were positive. One Newcastle fan replied to this tweet to share that they would ‘rather sign someone else’ and one Toon supporter shared that they think the only reason Longstaff looks set to stay at St. James’ Park is that no other clubs wanted him.
I’d rather sign someone else. Mattys just average at best
— Me (@FlackoMo) August 20, 2020
Cos nobody wanted him
— Aaron Olsson (@AOlssonNUFC) August 19, 2020
Are you happy about this update on Longstaff?
YES
NO
While some Newcastle fans were quite critical of Longstaff in response to this tweet, the majority of the Toon fans who replied to this post appeared to be happy about this update.
Given the promise that Longstaff showed during his debut season in the senior side last term – which included a winning goal on his Premier League debut against Manchester United – it would be understandable for fans to be overjoyed that the local lad, following long-term rumours over his future, looks set to stay at St. James’ Park after all.
However, it may be fair to say that Longstaff didn’t exactly set the world alight for the Toon in the top-flight last season. He made nine Premier League appearances and earned an overall rating of 6.47 from those performances, according to WhoScored, with the stats website giving a total of 17 Toon players a higher overall rating than Longstaff in the Premier League for the 2019/20 campaign.
Though judging by the positive responses to this tweet, it appears that plenty of Newcastle fans believe that the 20-year-old can improve on his performances from last season and contribute to a greater extent in the future.