Newcastle United departure confirmed following ‘really good’ Eddie Howe meeting

18-year-old forward Garang Kuol hasn’t trained with the Newcastle first-team since returning from a loan spell at Heart of Midlothian last season and has now joined Dutch side FC Volendam following a meeting with head coach Eddie Howe on Thursday.

Kuol will join the Eredivisie side, ‘subject to necessary approvals’ for the duration of the 2023-24 campaign. The teenager made nine appearances while on loan at Hearts last season, scoring once.

Last week, Howe confirmed that Kuol would be leaving the club on loan as he told reporters: “I met with him [Thursday] and had a really good chat. I believe he’ll be going out on loan on Friday.”

The forward follows Yankuba Minteh, Matthew Bondswell, Kell Watts, Jamal Lewis, Harrison Ashby and Max Thompson as the seventh player to temporarily leave The Magpies this summer.

Kuol joined Newcastle from Central Coast Mariners in January 2023 after the transfer was initially agreed in September 2022. The teenager went on to represent Australia in the World Cup in Qatar.

He came off the bench in the 4-1 defeat against France in November before becoming the youngest player to feature in the World Cup knockout stages since Pele in 1958 as he came on against eventual winners Argentina. Australia lost the match 2-1 with Kuol seeing a late chance saved by Emi Martinez.

The Egyptian-born forward went on to score his first senior international goal in a friendly match against Ecuador in March earlier this year.

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