Yankuba Minteh has made a good start to his loan stay at Feyenoord, with Eddie Howe hoping to bring him back to Newcastle United next season.
Minteh joined Newcastle from Odense in June for a rumoured £7 million before being loaned out to Feyenoord. The 19-year-old winger has three goals and an assist in his past five outings in the Eredivisie.
Last month, he made his debut for the Gambia national team, scoring in a critical 2-2 draw against Congo.
Despite being signed to Newcastle for four months, Minteh has yet to visit the city, with his loan to Feyenoord negotiated just before pre-season began.
“I was able to sign a contract with Newcastle, but I have never seen the city myself,” Minteh said. “The club immediately indicated that I would be loaned to Feyenoord.”
“I also signed my contract with Newcastle in Rotterdam.” The club sent a variety of personnel to the Netherlands to guarantee that my first few weeks were a success.
“The loan is for the duration of the season. I’ve heard that some people are hoping I’ll remain longer. But that’s a long way off.
“It’s obvious that I enjoy it here. I sense the trainers’ and fans’ gratitude. And I feel like I’m growing as a person thanks to this coach.”
Minteh’s most recent appearance, a 2-0 win over Zwolle, drew criticism from Feyenoord manager Arne Slot for deciding to take a risk alone rather than finding a teammate.
“I’m not sure if it was a lack of overview today, or if it was an urge to score a goal himself,” Slot told ESPN after the game.
“As far as I’m concerned, that’s not the same, because if you have a bird’s-eye view and see someone standing free and think, ‘okay, today I’m going for my own chance,’ that’s not the same as not seeing someone. Because, in general, I believe he has the upper hand.”Today, however, he frequently went for his own opportunity, but it is true that he is always involved in threats, because he is, of course, so fast.
But he clearly didn’t get the most out of it today. He’s still young and works extremely hard. He is also constantly ready to defend himself.
But I will look back carefully to see whether the overview was lacking or whether he thought I wanted to score a goal against this opponent.”
Minteh is due to join the Newcastle team for the first time next summer once his loan at Feyenoord expires.
He could be loaned out again, but Magpies coach Howe is ‘really impressed’ with the youngster’s progress in the Netherlands thus far.
“He’s started really well, and I’m really, really pleased,” Howe said to The Gazette. “When a player is loaned out, the expectation is that they will learn and develop their game, and he is definitely learning and developing.”
“He’s scoring goals playing in a good team in a good league so really pleased.”
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