Newcastle United Under-21s lead coach Robbie Stockdale has said winger Trevan Sanusi has “a big season” ahead of him after returning from an underwhelming loan spell at French club Lorient.
The former Birmingham City prospect trained with the Magpies first team during the summer of 2024 and made his senior debut as a substitute in an FA Cup third-round win against Bromley. His loan to Lorient last summer was limited by injuries, restricting him to just two senior appearances for the Ligue 1 side. He scored his first senior goal in a Coupe de France win against AS Gosier, but otherwise only made the bench five times in the league.
Maturity and Positives
Despite the disappointment, the England Under-18 international has returned to Tyneside in high spirits and impressed in a pre-season friendly with Spennymoor Town after featuring in a first-team friendly with Gateshead. Stockdale said Sanusi can take positives from his time in France and has noticed a change in the youngster.
“He was out on loan last year and it probably didn’t go ideally for him - but he will have learnt from it and he will know what it looks like. I’ve noticed a little bit of difference in his maturity and stuff like that so that’s great,” Stockdale told Chronicle Live. “No matter how the loan goes, you take some positives from it. Yes, it’s a big season for Tre. I don’t expect him to be with me - so hopefully he is with our first team or somebody else’s.”
Competition for Places
One player who could benefit from Sanusi moving up is 16-year-old winger Alfie Seldon, who featured for the Under-19s in UEFA Youth League ties with Benfica, Athletic Bilbao and Marseille last season. Seldon scored his first Under-21s goal in the recent friendly draw with Spennymoor, and Stockdale also praised fellow winger Michael Mills.
“He’s a really good player and there’s some real competition in wide positions which pushes everybody on. Michael Mills has done well too. It’s football, somebody is always after your place and I remind players of that all of the time,” he said. “They [players like Sanusi] are always looking up, can they get into that senior environment? Can they get into the first-team? But they have to look at what’s coming up behind them because they want their place and that’s the business.”
New Signing Afner Ca
New to Stockdale’s squad is Guinea-Bissau born striker Afner Ca, who signed a five-year deal after leaving Spanish club Levante. The 19-year-old made his Under-21s debut as a substitute at Spennymoor, missing a chance from 12 yards, but Stockdale believes he can become “a really good find”.
“It’s really, really early days - but what I’ve seen from him is different to the other forwards we have got. I think he will be a really physical threat at the top end of the pitch. He will be disappointed with the chance he missed but if we can tidy his technique up in situations like that, I think he can be a really good find for us,” he said.
The Under-21s begin their Premier League 2 season at home to Tottenham Hotspur on Monday, August 24, before hosting Fulham at Whitley Park seven days later.
