Newcastle United promoted Ludwig Francillette to first-team training.
Newcastle United have promoted defender Ludwig Francillette to first-team training as they prepare for their FA Cup replay against Rochdale.
A 1-1 draw at Spotland last weekend means the two sides have to do it all again on Tuesday night, just days after Newcastle’s trip to Wolverhampton Wanderers.
A replay was the last thing Newcastle wanted given their injury problems of late, as piling more and more games on this already-stretched squad is far from ideal.
Steve Bruce has a host defensive injuries right now, as Fabian Schar, Paul Dummett, Jamaal Lascelles, Jetro Willems, Ciaran Clark and Javi Manquillo are all missing.
That means Bruce may need to get a little creative at the back, and summer signing Ludwig Francillette could be one option for that game against Rochdale.
The giant Guadeloupe defender was spotted in training today, with Bruce promoting him to first-team training having been on the bench against Rochdale.
Francillette seemingly has a chance to make his Newcastle debut very soon, and he admitted his delight to The Chronicle as he made the jump to first-team training.
“I’ve made the walk across to train with the first team,” said Francillette. “It’s just great to learn and improve around such good players and great pros. I’ll keep working hard to be called upon if and when needed in training,” he added.
Francillette was a complete unknown when he signed for Newcastle over the summer, but seems to be doing enough to catch Bruce’s eye – and the injury problems could hand the 21-year-old his golden chance to play in the Newcastle first team in rapid time.
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