HawK

Have to disagree with chicken dancer, if we buy one player for our team to solely improve our first XI, a ball-playing keeper for tactical reasons alone would be transformative in the two main aspects of our play we struggle at, under a high press, and playing against a low block, in my opinion. But I don't think it's the most important signing for our squad right now. We're 'fine' at GK but would rather see 2x £20m potential players to pad out our squad up front and in midfield first.

Received the email on 16th as below, money is pending to go out tomorrow according to my banking app :

I've done some more research on this - you might be right, but it's a lot closer than that - it's only about 8 weeks as you don't need to complete the 3 year period before the age of 21, just during the season he turns 21, and I believe the season end is considered 30th June. If we'd signed him a couple of months earlier he could have been club trained.

Additionally, Hall is probably worth a lot more to us for he next few years because he can become club-trained for squad purposes for UEFA competitions. This is massive. It means he can fill one of the 4 bonus slots for players club-trained, of which only Sean Longstaff and Joe White can fill for us currently in List A.

Decided I'm all in on Trafford now, never seen him play but fuck it

I'm not an expert in it, but by my reading he doesn't meet the 'trained at club' requirement because of the loans to Falkirk and Carlisle, so didn't have 3 years of 15-21 at NUFC broken by a 'single loan', and the duration isn't quite long enough. If that's the case it could be just assumptive transfer rumors. ChatGPT seems to agree with me but that's hardly worth anything

Let's hope Burnley don't read that before finalising the price, sounds like prime Neuer

ChatGPT to the rescue : 🧤 James Trafford – Goalkeeper Profile James Trafford, Burnley's 22-year-old goalkeeper, has rapidly emerged as one of England's most promising talents. Standing at 1.97m (6'6"), his imposing presence is complemented by a blend of traditional shot-stopping prowess and modern ball-playing abilities. 🧤 Shot-Stopping & Clean Sheets Trafford's reflexes and positioning have been pivotal in his rise. During the 2024–25 Championship season, he achieved a remarkable 29 clean sheets in 45 appearances, equaling the record for the most in a single English league season (BBC Sport). Burnley conceded just 16 goals that season, setting a new Football League record (Wikipedia). ⚙️ Distribution & Tactical Intelligence Trafford's early experience as a midfielder has translated into exceptional distribution skills. His ability to play out from the back and make accurate passes under pressure has been widely noted, reflecting his composure and decision-making (Reddit discussion). This makes him well-suited to modern systems that rely on a "sweeper-keeper" role. 🧠 Mentality & Leadership Trafford’s mental strength is apparent in high-pressure moments. In January 2025, he saved two penalties in one match against Sunderland — an effort Burnley manager Scott Parker called “special” (Wikipedia). His communication and leadership help keep Burnley’s back line disciplined and organized. 🧬 Physical Attributes His height and reach give him a natural advantage in aerial duels. While dominant in many situations, he still has room to develop his consistency when claiming crosses — a common focus for young keepers. 🏆 Achievements & Recognition England U21: Trafford did not concede a single goal during England's victorious 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship campaign — the first in the tournament’s history (Wikipedia). Club: Named in the EFL Championship Team of the Season and winner of the Golden Glove for 2024–25 (Wikipedia). 🔮 Future Prospects Trafford has drawn transfer interest from Premier League clubs, with Newcastle United among those reportedly pursuing him. Burnley have valued him at around £30 million (TalkSPORT). He’s widely seen as a future contender for England’s No. 1 shirt. In summary: James Trafford combines old-school reliability with modern-day distribution and tactical awareness. With continued development, he looks set to become one of England’s top goalkeepers.

Be kind to someone who knows nothing about the player other than he's young and English and was part of a very mean Burnley defence, can he play with the ball at his feet ?

Yeah agreed, the rule does make sense. But the rule was first introduced in 2006-2007 though, according to wikipedia. Kruul moved to us in summer 2005... I think it could still be a mis-step perhaps?

This is the crux - do we prefer starting (if we have to), Sean Longstaff or 16yr old Joe Random from the youth team in a Champions League match, assuming Miley is already starting anyway.

Seems a bit of a mis-step in hindsight, I think they had these same rules back then for Home grown?

Yep this is my thinking too - if he was still under 21, he could be in List B I think this means - but now ineligible for club-trained in list A. Clear as mud !

Updated the list to include James Tavernier

Thanks @JT24 - I updated the list with Keepers

Oh, and if we re-qualify for CL next year, Lewis Hall would count in List B for us, and once he hits 21, he'll be in the same club-trained category as Sean Longstaff and Joe White.

Bear with me, this is my own maths/understanding of the below and may be wrong. https://documents.uefa.com/r/Regulations-of-the-UEFA-Champions-League-2025/26/Article-30-Player-eligibility-Online Definitions as per uefa.com : Locally trained player - is either a "club-trained player" or an "association-trained player". Association-trained player - An "association-trained player" is a player who, between the ages of 15 (or the start of the season during which the player turns 15) and 21 (or the end of the season during which the player turns 21), and irrespective of the player's nationality and age, has been registered with a club or with other clubs affiliated to the same association as that of the player's current club for a period, continuous or not, of three entire seasons (i.e. a period starting with the first official match of the relevant domestic championship and ending with the last official match of that relevant domestic championship) or of 36 months. Club trained player - is a player who, between the ages of 15 (or the start of the season during which the player turns 15) and 21 (or the end of the season during which the player turns 21), and irrespective of the player's nationality and age, has been registered with the player's current club for a period, continuous or not, of three entire seasons (i.e. a period starting with the first official match of the relevant domestic championship and ending with the last official match of that relevant domestic championship) or of 36 months. My shorthand interpretation of the above : Association trained player is someone trained somewhere within the FA's jurisdiction for 3 years between the ages of 15 and 21 (quantity of loans/abroad can mess this up). Club trained player is someone who has trained at the club for 3 years between the ages of 15 and 21 (quantity of loans/abroad can mess this up). Locally trained player is someone who fits either of the above rules. List A as per uefa.com article 31 : Max 25 players, of which 8 are reserved exclusively for locally trained players. No more than 4 of the locally trained players can be association trained. List A must specify the players who qualify as being "locally trained", as well as whether they are "club-trained" or "association-trained". If a club has fewer than eight locally trained players on its List A, the maximum number of players that can be registered on this list is reduced accordingly. List B as per uefa.com article 31 : Unlimited in number A player may be registered on List B if he is born on or after 1 January 2004 and has, since his 15th birthday, been eligible to play for the club concerned for any uninterrupted period of two years, or a total of three consecutive years with a maximum of one loan period to a club from the same association for a period not longer than one year. Players aged 16 may be registered on List B if they have been registered with the participating club for the previous two years without interruption. 31.13 Goalkeepers special rules as per uefa.com article 31 : Each club must include at least two goalkeepers on List A and at least three in total (List A and List B combined). My shorthand understanding of all the above You submit 2 lists, A and B. You can field any players registered from either list. In theory if you have enough young players your squad could be unlimited in size. In List A, you get 17 spots that you can give to absolutely anyone, regardless of nationality, when you signed them etc. In List A, you can register up to 4 extra players on top of the 17 above that have trained at some club in England between the ages of 15-21 for 3 years (excluding loans to non-FA clubs, i.e. aborad) In List A, you can register a further 4 extra players on top of the 21 we're up to so far that are also club trained, meaning they've trained for 3 years at Newcastle United between 15-21, excluding loans to other clubs (even English-clubs, they have to have trained at Newcastle United as their main registered club for 3 of those years). You don't register Under-21s in List A that qualify as club-trained players, as you can submit them as part of List B for free. My understanding of the eligibility of Newcastle United's current squad : Green = Club Trained Blue = Otherwise locally trained via association Orange = No special eligibility Conclusion Club trained : Only using 2 spots of 4 available which are Sean Longstaff and Joe White, because Miley and Murphy can be submitted in List B as they are under 21 and also club-trained from July 2025. Locally trained : 18 senior players in total including John Ruddy and Mark Gillespie. Other : 9 senior players on the books that aren't locally trained players We can register 23 of 25 List A spots available now, with Lewis Miley and Alex Murphy as part of List B and not taking the club-trained spots of List A. Sean Longstaff and Joe White take 2 of the 4 club-trained spots for over 21s. We have 2 free spots on our List A roster for over-21, club-trained players. Notable ex-NUFC players we could sign to pad out our CL2025/2026 List A squad to 25 players (updated with @JT24 and @Stottie's suggested players): Elliott Anderson Adam Armstrong James Tavernier Fraser Forster (GK) Freddie Woodman (GK) Jack Alnwick (GK) Notable ex-NUFC players that wouldn't count as club-trained : Tim Kruul (GK) is only 2 of 3 years club-trained at Newcastle United because of his loan to Carlisle (2008-2009), he only completed 2005-2007 as a player registered to play for Newcastle United. So he would not count as club trained (please correct me if I'm mistaken). ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TL;DR Sean Longstaff currently would occupy a totally free spot for CL2025/2026 with no impact on preventing any other players at Newcastle United from playing in CL2025/2026. Joe White is in the same situation We have spots for 2 more 'free' club players, we are using 2 of 4 of the over-21, club-trained player spots Lewis Miley and other youth team players occupy List B players and do not have to count to the club-trained player spots of List A I think for 2026-2027 and beyond, Lewis Hall would count as a List B then as he gets old a List A club-trained player in the same category as Sean Longstaff and Joe White (might need someone to do the maths on the date of birth etc. - I've not done it myself yet). Please tell me if I got anything wrong ! Update: Table for the graphically inclined :

I love it when a plan comes together

It is car crash telly tbf, except the car crashing is one of them baby bentleys and it had an angry old rich man being driven in it who's now shouting at all the people trying to fix it.

I'll have the streaky bacon kit, please

Is Pissi still about?

That was in the same season, right ? Players just stay at the same level forever ?

Used to think that until we played Bromley