‘My next move’ – Newcastle United forward admits he could leave the club this summer
Dominic Scurr
3 – 4 minutes
Newcastle United forward Garang Kuol is set to explore his options in the summer after a season with the Under-21s.
Kuol was originally set to go out on loan for the 2024-25 season but that was ultimately blocked after he picked up a quad injury during pre-season.
Garang Kuol at Newcastle UnitedGarang Kuol at Newcastle United
Garang Kuol at Newcastle United | AFP via Getty Images
The 20-year-old had been training with the first team in pre-season but is still waiting to make his competitive debut for the side, more than two years after joining from Central Coast Mariners.
But after two frustrating loan spells with Hearts and Volendam in the previous two seasons, Kuol has been able to make an impact at Under-21s level since returning from injury.
As the 2024-25 campaign draws to a close, Kuol has eight goals in 13 appearances for Newcastle Under-21s.
Although Kuol has progressed well on Tyneside this season, a first-team call-up is unlikely, with 17-year-old Sean Neave preferred to him as part of Eddie Howe’s training squad.
The plan is for the Australian World Cup international to leave the club again in the summer, with his contract at Newcastle running until June 2026.
Garang Kuol hints he could leave Newcastle United this summer
Having been involved in senior football from a young age and becoming one of the youngest ever players to feature in the World Cup knockout match when he represented Australia in Qatar in 2022, Kuol is keen to return to playing senior football next season.
But with first-team opportunities at Newcastle limited, he will have to look elsewhere in order to fulfill his ambitions next season.
Speaking to ESPN earlier this month, Kuol said: “The most important thing for me is to be able to play [senior] football… it won’t be that easy to jump from the Under-21s at Newcastle to a first-team squad which could be in the Champions League.
“For the summer, I’m not really sure what’s going to happen in terms of my next move. But I’d say [senior] football is the ultimate goal.”
Garang Kuol’s ‘rude awakening’ training with Newcastle United first-team
A big reason why first-team opportunities are limited for players like Kuol is the form of striker Alexander Isak, who has scored 25 goals so far this season. The Magpies also have Callum Wilson, Anthony Gordon and Will Osula as alternative striker options before any academy players are considered.
Having worked alongside Isak in pre-season, Kuol was honest enough to admit the significant difference in levels between Newcastle’s first-team and Under-21s side.
“I was training with [Isak] in preseason,” Kuol added. “He was just so silky and so comfortable with the ball. And so quick. You can’t really get the ball off him. He’s just so hard to stop.
“The main thing that every Newcastle first-team player has is the fitness and the physicality, which is what’s most important. When us young players train with the EPL side, it’s sort of a rude awakening of the physical demands that comes in training.
“Even just a simple positioning drill, you get tired within a minute and it’s just the intensity and the work rate you have to apply and train every day.”
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