Former Newcastle United striker Lewis McNall is delighted for Sean Longstaff over his Premier League success.
McNall spent over a decade playing alongside the United midfielder as they progressed through the club's academy.
He told Chronicle Live: I didn't really get much of a chance because the Under-23s had a big squad at the time but that's football, so that's why I went out to Gateshead.
It was frustrating, but I was very happy for Sean because he has worked so hard through all of the time I have been playing alongside him and that is since we were nine years old.
He deserved the chance to prove himself and he has taken it.
You look at a lot of players that go out on loan from the academy and it just doesn't happen.
They don't play, or they get recalled after a couple of months. That didn't happen with Sean.
He went to Blackpool and Kilmarnock and he played every game plus he scored ten or fifteen goals from midfield.
You don't see that very often.
I always knew he would do well because he has the attitude that he is obsessed with football.
He is obsessed with getting better and you could see that from a young age.
We used to train together, and he would scream at players around him because he set such high standards for himself and he wanted other players to reach those standards too."
