"If you were to take that relentless running of Erling Haaland, the body and the hold-up play of Romelu Lukaku, and the skills of Leon Bailey, then you have a Whisper."
As recommendations go, it surely does not get much better than that for Dujuan 'Whisper' Richards. The Jamaican prospect is approaching the end of a two-week trial with Newcastle United, and the promising striker had a watching brief at Whitley Park on Monday night as the Magpies under-21s fought back twice to draw with Leeds United.
News of Richards' arrival on Tyneside emerged in the Jamaica Observer last month, with the 17-year-old then pictured at St James' Park as Eddie Howe's side were held by West Ham. The forward has since shared pictures and videos on social media of his time at the club's Benton training base, as he bids to impress academy staff and earn a permanent move.
READ MORE: Potential signing watches and striker's audition as Newcastle U21s fight back for Leeds draw
The Phoenix All Stars Academy prospect earned his first senior Jamaica call-up last month for a training camp, having netted more than 30 goals for Kingston College last term. Academy president Craig Butler insists Newcastle are not the only club to express an interest in Richards, stressing a lucrative offer elsewhere has already been snubbed as the teenager pursues his dream with the Magpies.
Butler told ChronicleLive: "We don't do this for money, we do this for the love of the game. He had an opportunity to go to one of the Middle East countries and make a lot of money.
"The minute he heard about Newcastle, he said 'no, I want to go to Newcastle. I want to go there and play at the highest level, I want them to see me and my name to be remembered'.
"Nothing else came close. He totally threw the Middle East opportunity out of the door because we all know the Mecca of football is Europe, and the highest order of play there is in the Premier League."
Already standing at 6ft 4ins, Richards is regarded as a 'powerhouse' who can do 'very unusual things' for his size. Butler's description above may read as hyperbolic, but it is an attempt from the academy president to encapsulate the exciting striker's blend of pace, power and technique.
Butler added: "The way he kicks the ball for a player with that big a foot, he has the capacity to kick with his full laces. You don't have a player that is just big and strong, you have one that is extremely technical and smart.
"He wants to be the best footballer on the planet, and he's had good experience in seeing what that is and working towards it."
However, this was not always the case for Richards. When the aspiring footballer arrived at the Phoenix academy at the age of 11, the clinical finishing with both feet and the speed which the trialist is now known for were not immediately apparent.
Butler explained: "When he first came, he was really just a big, tall skinny kid with a wry smile and a very warm personality. He never spoke, and he could use his left foot but the right foot was only there for walking on. I remember going six months with him and telling him he can't touch the ball with his left foot.
"I used to tell him he was slow like molasses because he was gangly. But he got faster and faster, we did a lot of sprint training with them. He's done a lot of 400m, 150m, and 200m races with weights attached.
"It's things like that which have made him get better and stronger, and today he is a powerhouse. But he wasn't always that way, we built every day with a lot of hard work. It's not been an easy road but it's been a lot of fun at the same time."
During his time with Phoenix, Richards split his time between his family home in Port Royal and the academy in Kingston. The striker has forged close bonds with his team-mates over the last six years, but the steadfast focus on his goal remains the same.
Butler said: "It's one big brotherhood at the academy, they're very close and talking all of the time. They're a family, they live together most of the time.
"You don't spend every day with someone for six years and not get close, on weekends we're out on the boats and have fun. But at the same time, we train twice a day very hard and we're also doing things like public speaking and image projection, all of the things that go into being a professional athlete.
"He's very dedicated to his family, his football and Phoenix. Others might like going out and partying or video games, he only wants to play football."
Goalkeeper Akeem Bernard has played alongside Richards for four years, and told his team-mate 'your time is now' when he first heard of the trial at Newcastle. When asked to describe playing alongside the striker, he simply said: "I know when he gets the ball, he's going to score. He's a machine, you give him the ball and he scores."
Richards' experience with the Magpies is not his first taste of football on these shores. The rising star previously spent time at Brooke House College in Leicestershire, while also attracting domestic attention after playing in a starring role in several Phoenix academy fixtures against English top-flight teams.
Leon Bailey is the academy's most famous export, and the Aston Villa winger has served as a mentor for Richards' fledgling career so far. Butler is confident this guidance, alongside the academy's intensive all-round programme, has prepared the striker for life in the professional game.
He said: "We played a lot of England youth teams in the summer of 2020. The impact he had and what people saw, I think he garnered interest.
"I know Newcastle had interest, and several other clubs as well. He has been exposed early to what professional football looks like, and what it takes to get there."
It remains to be seen whether Richards has done enough over this last fortnight to make his stay at Newcastle permanent. Butler accepts the teenager is facing a sizeable step up to impress with a club currently sat in the Premier League's top four, but has every confidence Phoenix's latest academy star will prove himself in black-and-white.
He said: "Whisper really is a great young talent, and at 17 there is still room for improvement. But at this point, he has shattered all of the records for goalscoring in Jamaica.
"He is way past Jamaica now and his age group, he's a beast. He's ready, and I think he'll make an impact. You have to recognise these are high-level clubs he's going into and to respect the quality of the players he's going to play with and against. I'm certain he'll hold his own and make an impact.
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