NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 09: Newcastle United Head Coach Steve Bruce speaks to the media during the Newcastle United Training Session at the Newcastle United Training Centre on September 09, 2020 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. (Photo by Serena Taylor/Newcastle United via Getty Images)
According to the Chronicle Live, Newcastle United are currently running the rule over former Saint-Etienne midfielder Florent Indalecio. The Magpies have taken him on trial, with the 23-year-old featuring in some of the club’s U-23 fixtures during the pre-season.
As per the report, the Magpies are yet to decide on a professional contract for Indalecio, who recently scored a stunning overhead kick on the training ground. Indalecio started his youth career with Saint-Etienne in France but was dismissed from the club’s youth set-up due to bad behaviour.
Essentially a central attacking midfielder by trade, Indalecio admitted to the French media earlier this year that he was very rowdy and cheeky as a kid and the coaches didn’t want to keep him in the academy.
After failing to find himself a new club following his dismissal from St.Etienne, the 23-year-old shifted to Australia, where he took up a part-time job as a builder. He continued playing amateur football with Fraser Park FC. Indalecio is now trying to earn himself a shot at evolving into a professional footballer in Europe, and has done quite well for Newcastle’s U-23s.
Newcastle have shown an inclination to dig deep into the market in recent times to unearth hidden gems, as evident from their acquisition of little-known French defender Ludwig Francillette last summer. However, it’s going to be a long shot for Florent Indalecio to earn a professional deal with the Magpies, considering that he’s already 23.
It’s not very often that we see youngsters making the grade in the Premier League if they haven’t already done so by the time they are 23. In addition to that, Indalecio doesn’t have any prior professional experience in the senior men’s game, so it would be a massive gamble for Newcastle to take a punt on him.
Notwithstanding the fact that the Magpies have enough room for another creative midfielder in their first-team, it wouldn’t be a wise decision to throw a complete rookie like Indalecio into the Premier League arena.
The English top-flight is perhaps the most competitive league on the planet and it goes without saying that the 23-year-old needs a stepping stone to hone his skills before evolving into a player capable of thriving at such a high level.
It would have made sense for Newcastle to offer him a chance to shine had he been 18 or 20, but at 23, the Magpies certainly can’t afford to look at him as an exciting long-term prospect. Plus, the Frenchman’s patchy disciplinary record in his younger days doesn’t make things any easier for him.
Suffice to say, Newcastle United offering Florent Indalecio a professional deal would only be a waste of resources. The 23-year-old’s chances of breaking into Steve Bruce’s senior squad look very slim, indeed, and he would be better off trying his luck elsewhere, preferably at a lower-division club in England or in some of the lower leagues in Europe.