Dan Barlaser is in line to make his first Newcastle United appearance in three years with Steve Bruce impressed by a midfielder who has enjoyed a superb loan spell at Rotherham in League One, according to The Mail.
While one highly-rated academy graduate is set to depart and leave a hole in the Magpies’ engine room, that very same void could be filled by a man who must have thought his time at St James’ Park was done.
Grant Hanley, Jesus Gamez and Henri Saivet all started on the night when Barlaser made his most recent appearance in those black and white stripes – an EFL Cup defeat to Nottingham Forest in August 2017.
But the Gateshead-born 23-year-old looks set to take advantage of Matty Longstaff’s impending departure by being handed the opportunity to belatedly secure a future for himself on Tyneside.
The Mail reports that head coach Bruce believes Barlaser has a lot to offer, with his impressive technical ability ensuring that he should adapt to life in the Premier League.
The former England U18 international has also caught the eye of Magpies legend turned loan manager Shola Ameobi during an eye-catching spell in Yorkshire.
“Dan’s done well. I’ve been really pleased with him. He’s had a good run in the team to settle in and he’s brilliant on set-pieces,” Rotherham manager Paul Warne told The Star in January after Barlaser’s stunning free-kick secured a 2-1 victory over Blackpool.
Unless that Mohamed Bin Salman takeover goes through, Newcastle will have to keep the purse-strings tight over the summer.
So Barlaser might not be the only academy graduate who finds himself in Bruce’s plans.
The Mail reports that young trio Tom Allan, Elliot Anderson and Jack Young are under consideration too.
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