Scoring in his third Eredivisie game in a row for Feyenoord, Newcastle United loanee Yankuba Minteh is finally finding his feet in the Netherlands.
The youngster, who was bought from OB in Denmark by the Magpies and then immediately shipped off to the Dutch side, took some time to get the ball running, but he now has, and his manager, Arne Slot, is thrilled about it.
There has been a lot of talk about the Newcastle player’s future, with claims in January that Eddie Howe wanted him back, and the Feyenoord manager hinted he would be open to the player staying longer, as relayed by 1908.nl.
He said: “There are naturally several parties involved in that: Feyenoord, himself and Newcastle as well. He is developing really well, but it’s always a question of what a player costs, whether he can be loaned out again, what the other options are on the market and what we can pay. That is a consideration we will have to make in the coming months, but it’s clear he is developing well.”
This was something that was brought up several times by the press after the Heracles game, and Slot did double down on the stance that the matter is not in his or Feyenoord’s hands, but Newcastle’s.
He added: “Maybe they are very keen to have him back if they see that he is developing very well. That they think he is already ready for that level. I just don’t know if the regulations allow that, but we’ll see in the coming weeks.”
The 19-year-old winger has found the back of the net eight times and assisted another three goals in 28 appearances since leaving Newcastle for Feyenoord last summer, but is, at least on paper, expected to return to St James’ Park once the season ends.
A lot, as Slot said, will depend on the Magpies and what they want to do with him, perhaps also depending on who the man in the dugout is next season.
