Changing of the defensive guard

A SHORT while back we were talking about Tino Livramento and Lewis Hall being the future of Newcastle United - aye, and England - for the next 10 years. And well they might.

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Injury has currently robbed us of two precocious young talents which is a dreadful blow, but they will undoubtedly come again.

Now in their absence we've turned our attention to the centre of United’s last line and believe we are witnessing the same sort of emergence with Malick Thiaw and Sven Botman. The future cemented in the present.

Eddie Howe had been grappling with aged defenders wherever you're gaze fell - Kieran Trippier, Fabian Schar, Dan Burn, Jamaal Lascelles and Emil Krafth are all the wrong side of 30 and as such their talent will become swallowed by gathering rust.

That cried out for younger men, with the pace the bulk of those mentioned weren't blessed with, to come to the rescue and, with that in mind, United targeted right across the back four and came up with gems. Every single one of them.

Tino and Hall have turned into England internationals, Thiaw must add to his small German collection of caps sooner rather than later, and Botman is long overdue his first full international appearance for Holland.

The emergence of Thiaw and Botman as a partnership has only just happened but they go together like Ant and Dec, Morecambe and Wise, pie and peas. They are made for one another. Two pieces of the same jigsaw.

United have been admirably served by Schar and Burn in harness unchallenged and unbowed but no longer. They have stern competition and that is healthy for the club, for Howe, and for the fans.