Newcastle United eye major European boost as £6.7m star continues to shine

The success of one Newcastle United youngster could allow the Magpies to make the most of links with 'top European clubs' - according to one Magpies official.

Former Magpies academy product Peter Ramage is currently working alongside another Magpies old boy Shola Ameobi as the club's assistant loan manager and he has kept a close eye on several players that are gaining valuable experience away from Tyneside this season. Ramage was at Alloa Athletic's Indodrill Stadium on Saturday as Magpies youngster Michael Ndiweni featured for Annan Athletic in a 1-1 draw in the third tier of Scottish football.

However, it was the development of another United starlet that was discussed by Ramage as Gambian international Yankuba Minteh continues to impress in the colours of Eredivisie champions Feyenoord. The former Odense winger appeared in his side's 4-2 home win against FC Utrecht on Sunday and Ramage believes Minteh's form at De Kuip Stadium can help United foster strong relations with clubs around Europe as they look to aid the development of their young players.

Speaking to iNews, the former Magpies defender said: ““He’s (Minteh) a great kid and he’s taken to it like a duck to water but there’s so much work that has gone on behind the scenes. Feyenoord have been brilliant with him and we visit every four to six weeks. We’re in constant communication with Yankuba, we still treat him as a player who is coming through our academy in terms of reviews, analysis, clips and making sure he’s getting any information the manager wants to get to him.

"It’s been a good experience for us working with Feyenoord because the hope is that going down the line we’ll be bringing in more Yankuba Minteh’s and they’ll be going out to Champions League clubs and top European clubs.”

Minteh will meet a familiar face in his next outing for Feyenoord as they visit Garang Kuol's Volendam on Thursday evening.