'Frustrating' - Newcastle United midfielder reacts to injury blow & seven-week absence
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
The 18-year-old had been sidelined between March and October. A back injury ruled him out for the remainder of the 2023-24 season before a metatarsal fracture forced the teenager to miss the start of the current campaign.
Miley made his return during the Carabao Cup round four win over Chelsea in October. However, he had to wait seven weeks before making his next first-team appearance. That came as an 80th minute substitute at Portman Road on Saturday.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad‘It’s been frustrating’


Reflecting on his time out, Miley told NewcastleWorld: “It's been quite tough. I was coming back from my back injury and then I did my foot which was a really tough moment for me to get around. I've got mentally stronger and it's put me in a really good place now by being in the gym and stuff for a while.
"Yeah, it's been frustrating, obviously. While I've been out, I've just been trying to focus on different things like the gym and stuff to get stronger and stuff, which I think has helped, obviously, being on the pitch and stuff back now. That was probably the only positive, really, but it's been a frustrating few months for me."
With Eddie Howe unable to offer Miley regular minutes, the decision was taken to make the midfielder available for the under-21s to help build his fitness and match sharpness.
Playing for Newcastle under-21s
Miley accumulated a total of 214 minutes across three matches for United’s second string. He played the first-half of last Monday’s 3-2 win over Chelsea before 48 hours later being called up to Howe’s squad for the Carabao Cup semi-final win over Brentford.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad"I am feeling really good now,” said Miley, “I've played a few games for the under-21s now. Just picking my fitness up. I've been out a while, so it's going to be back out on the pitch and hopefully get some minutes to the first team soon.
“I feel like I'm training really well and obviously getting my match fitness again and playing really well. So I think that's really helping me at the minute. So hopefully it's a short amount of time, really."
The return of Sandro Tonali & Co


Miley’s game time has been restricted due to the number of options in midfield, which includes Sandro Tonali, Bruno Guimaraes, Joe Willock, Joelinton and Sean Longstaff. It was a luxury Howe didn’t have last season due to an unprecedented amount of injuries.
"Yeah, obviously, it's a really talented squad and the manager has said to work for my chance,” said Miley. “I think that's about it, really. Just building my fitness up again and then getting back into the first team.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad“I think it's good for all of us to be fair having that competition around, it'll make us all better players. Playing with each other we'll get better because we've got so much quality around the team now.”
Miley made 26 appearances during his breakthrough campaign, becoming the club’s youngest player to play in Europe, while his goal against Fulham last December saw him become their youngest Premier League goalscorer.
Playing against Kylian Mbappe
The Stanley-born midfielder is hoping to win his place back in Newcastle’s starting XI soon.
“It was a surreal moment, playing against the best players in Europe, really. Playing against the likes of [Kylian] Mbappe was a really good moment. Hopefully, we can get back to the Champions League soon.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad“It was obviously a real high in my career [the goal vs Fulham] and something I've dreamt of since I was a boy. I think it's been tough going from playing so many minutes to being out for a while but hopefully I can pick up on that again soon
“Obviously, it was great to play that many minutes last season. Hopefully, I’ll get lots more minutes this season. I’ll keep building my fitness, and see what it brings.”
Comment Guidelines
National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.