Newcastle United may be splashing the cash to improve Eddie Howe's first-team this summer but there is also work taking place behind the scenes to secure the best young talent for the future. Dan Ashworth recently admitted the Magpies cannot sustain simply buying players for the 'here and now' and has subsequently turned his attention to the stars of tomorrow.
Newcastle poached young Aussie sensation Garang Kuol from Down Under and recently announced the arrival of Gambian winger Yankuba Minteh from Danish club Odense. There has also been teenage talent signed from England, Scotland, Ireland and Northern Ireland in the last 12 months.
But Newcastle are also keeping a very close eye on the south American market, most notably Brazil. The country has produced some of the world's finest exploits over the years, most of which start out in the Brazilian Serie A and Serie B before making their move to Europe.
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Newcastle have kept a close eye on a whole host of talent from the country in recent months, with scouting chief Steve Nickson regularly flying over to take a look at top flight games. The north east outfit have been heavily linked with the likes of Flamengo's Matheus Franca, Santos' Ângelo Gabriel, Vasco de Gama's Eguinaldo and many more.
It is a transfer strategy that has worked absolute wonders for Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona in years gone by. The former signed Vinicius Jr and Rodyrgo in consecutive years and both have flourished into Bernabeu superstars under Carlo Ancelotti.
Los Blancos believe they have found the next superstar-in-waiting after completing a deal for 16-year-old sensation Endrick. The teenager will leave Palmeiras for Madrid when he turns 18 in July 2024.
Barcelona scouted, charmed and eventually signed Neymar from Santos back in 2013. The then 19-year-old attacker bid a teary farewell to his boyhood club before moving to the Camp Nou. Four years later, he left Barcelona for PSG in a world-record £200m deal.
The Catalan outfit have never matched the success of Neymar when scouring Brazil but the club did try to find Brazilian gems with likes of Emerson Royal, Matheus Fernandes, Douglas and Marlon.
Barcelona signed purchasing agreements with Santos duo Kaiky and Angelo Gabriel last year. However, Chelsea are poised to steal the latter after also signing Vasco de Gama's Andrey Santos earlier this year, while Kaiky ended up joining Almeria.
Right-back Vinicius Tobias and winger Savio have been on loan at Real Madrid and PSV, respectively, and are expected to make permanent switches to Europe in the near future. Vitor Roque, linked with Newcastle, is expected to join them if Barcelona can solve their financial issues.
Premier League clubs are starting to follow Barcelona and Real Madrid's lead and have cottoned on to the fact young, relatively cheap gems can be sold the dream of European football before becoming mega stars. Chelsea are starting to add Brazilian talent to their arsenal, while West Ham have also began scouting missions in south America.
The club's Head of Recruitment Rob Newman was spotted at Vasco da Gama's training ground last year, posing for a photo with the Brazil side's home shirt, while presenting his hosts with a maroon Hammers jersey. The east London outfit are said to be creating a scouting network in Rio de Janeiro to give them a better understanding of up and coming players from Vasco, Flamengo, Fluminense and Botafogo.
Franca, 18, continues to be linked with a move to Tyneside as Newcastle attempt to add another Brazilian to their ranks. The teenage attacker is said to be worth north of £20m and has been watched by Howe's side, Crystal Palace and many more clubs.
Toon chief Nickson has vast experience of Brazil and spearheaded Bruno Guimaraes' move from Lyon in January when the player was on international duty and played a role in Joelinton's 2019 switch from Hoffenheim. Nickson has been networking once again in recent months and it wouldn't be a surprise to see Newcastle poach a 'wonder kid' from Brazil in the near future.
