Former Newcastle United goalkeeper Max Thompson has signed for Gateshead, becoming the first signing of a new era for the National League club. The 22-year-old has agreed a deal that will keep him at the club until the end of next season.
From Champions League to National League
Thompson trained regularly alongside United's first-team stoppers during his lengthy stay at St James' Park and was an unused substitute in Champions League games against Barcelona, Benfica and PSV Eindhoven. A competitive senior debut remained out of reach, but he gained first-team experience during loan spells with Northampton Town and Chesterfield.
He spent the final months of last season on loan with Scottish club Ayr United, and his time as a Magpie ended when he was not offered a new contract during the summer. After a trial with League Two club Rotherham United, Thompson joined Hartlepool United on a short-term deal in September and made a handful of appearances before departing last month.
New challenge at Gateshead
Thompson will be in the Gateshead squad for Saturday's home game with Barrow as they look for only a second league win of the season in their 16th National League fixture. He told the club website: "It's good just to get playing again, get settled with a new group and hopefully just kick on really. With everything going on over the past month, it looks like it's all been cleared up now and it's going to be a smooth transition for me getting into here."
"I'm in the building, everything is signed, it's time to get my head down and crack on with what I can do to help the team," he added. "I guess to show what I can do and add to the team any which way I can to hopefully turn results around to primarily stay in the league and whatever else comes from that, even better, we can try and kick on up the league as well."
Long-term commitment amid takeover
After the uncertainty of his short-term deal at Hartlepool, Thompson is eager to show what he can do with a longer-term commitment at Gateshead, as a takeover by US-based Flacks Group draws closer. "It's a different challenge, one I've never been part of before," he explained. "It's going to be tough but I knew coming into this it wasn't going to be easy. It's an opportunity to test myself, to see how I can handle the pressure of it and see what comes out of it."
"It's a lot easier once you know where you're going to be for the season, rather than waiting day-by-day for what's going to happen," he said. "It's definitely nicer, it settles you down and you can get focused with what you have to do rather primarily focusing on myself. I can focus on the team and what we might need rather than what I need."
