World Cup record-breaker pictured in Newcastle United colours ahead of January move

The 20-year-old featured in the Magpies’ opening pre-season friendly against German third-tier side SpVgg Unterhaching and was named on the bench seven days later for the visit to Hull City.

However, that was the last sighting of Kuol. United boss Eddie Howe confirmed the winger wasn’t part of his squad for the tour of Tokyo because a knee injury. He then tore his right quad in training, ruling him out for three months in total.

But Kuol appears to be back to full health after playing 62 minutes in the young Magpies’ 3-0 defeat away to Mansfield Town in the EFL Trophy. He then got 68 minutes under his belt as the under-21s beat Tamworth 6-5 on penalties in the National League Cup last night.

Newcastle will re-assess Kuol’s future when the January transfer window opens, and the likelihood is he’ll leave on loan. In the summer, Kuol attracted interest from Portugal, Belgium and English clubs but his injury meant he stayed put.

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Kuol signed for Newcastle in January 2023 as one of Australia’s brightest talents. In the months leading up to Tyneside switch, Kuol caught the eye in a A-League All Stars match against Barcelona and became the youngest player since legend Pele to appear in a World Cup knockout game.

However, Kuol has struggled in Europe with his loan spells at Hearts and FC Volendam fetching a total of 25 appearances. But that didn’t stop Howe from including Kuol in his squad for the post-season trip to Australia in May.

He was subject to a fanfare in his homeland, making his non-competitive Toon debut as a substitute against Tottenham Hotspur where he converted his spot-kick in a penalty shootout win. He then played a full game against the A-League All Stars as a youthful United were hammered 8-0.