Bruce reveals the surprise NUFC player who impressed him in China - "He was excellent"
Steve Bruce has picked out Newcastle United youngster Matty Longstaff for praise following his 'excellent' cameo in our 1-0 win over West Ham last weekend.
While he may have been living in the shadow of his older brother Sean over the last 6 months, Matty has been one of our top performing players at U-23 level over the past season and earned a well deserved chance to impress in the Asia Trophy last weekend.
He came on for the final 20 minutes of our 1-0 win over West Ham and Steve Bruce has praised his performance, insisting that there's 'nothing better' than seeing a young player coming through 'if they're good enough'.
Here's what the 58-year-old has had to say about Matty's impressive display last weekend:
"Sean’s brother played really well in the 20 minutes against West Ham.
"I thought he was excellent.
"Probably, Sean was thrown in at the deep end, and he swam straight away.
"If they’re good enough, there’s nothing better than a young player coming through.
We’ll try and do that, give them the chance.”
Great to see Matty getting some hard earned praise by the new boss, with him deserving his chance at senior level after several strong displays at reserve level.
A loan to a League One side had been mooted, but Steve Bruce may be keen to take a closer look at the 19-year-old against Preston and Hibernian before deciding on his immediate future.
As for the other player who caught the eye against West Ham, I thought Muto was the stand out player, showing real sharpness on the ball, brilliant movement and taking his goal well.
Shelvey also put in a much improved performance, pulling off some stunning passes and helping us gain control of the game, while Sorensen and Sterry also put in good shifts.
