Liam Kennedy has been speaking on a recent edition of NUFC Matters about all things relating to Newcastle United.
One of the topics that he spent some time on was Matty Longstaff and his lack of game time this season.
The 21-year-old signed a new deal with the Toon last summer, and he has made just five first-team appearances all season.
Longstaff’s last match for Newcastle came in January against Arsenal, and he hasn’t been seen since.
This has clearly annoyed Kennedy, who talked about Longstaff’s situation.
He said: “It’s a really frustrating situation for anybody who values the player and thinks he could add value to Newcastle United’s team.
“Steve Bruce just isn’t in that camp. He thinks the player needs to show a lot more. He sees the player every day, so only he knows, and the people around know exactly whether he’s putting it in [the effort in training].
“The reports that you hear, he is, and he’s doing really well in training. I think it’s a real shame that he’s been frozen out. I’ve said it on here before. I think the treatment of the player has been a disgrace.”
Do you think Longstaff should be given more first-team opportunities?
Yes, he should be played more
No, he isn't good enough
TIF Thoughts on Longstaff’s situation…
Newcastle do have options in central midfield, but it seems odd that Longstaff was given a chance by Steve Bruce in December and January, only to be never used again.
He has been on the bench on six occasions since then but never made it onto the pitch in any of those games.
So, the whole situation is strange, and we wouldn’t be surprised if in the summer Longstaff looks for a way out of St James’ Park as it doesn’t look like he is going to get a chance under Bruce.
In other news: ‘The official line from people’ – Liam Kennedy provides Newcastle arbitration update