Ahead of potentially signing for Newcastle United, Omar Marong and Alieu Saine have flown to Tyneside.

The net is cast ever wider for young talent and the pair are arriving for a month-long trial for Newcastle United to evaluate them.

Omar Marong is captain of the Gambia Under 17s and Alieu Saine is their star attacking player.

The duo made headlines in September when they were instrumental in their country winning the WAFU A U-17 Tournament in September.

Omar Marong, a 16-year-old central midfielder, captained Gambia Under 17s to that success, and winger Alieu Saine scored four goals to be joint top scorer in the tournament. The Baby Scorpions winning the tournament by defeating Senegal in the final.

The pair are currently with the TMT Academy and Omar Marong and Alieu Saine will now spend a month with Newcastle United after setting off for Tyneside on Sunday.

Gambian journalist Ebrima KB Sonko reported the news yesterday via Facebook, accompanying it with a photo of the duo at Gambia’s Banjul International Airport, ahead of them boarding their flight to the UK.

Along with all other top clubs, Newcastle United searching the world for emerging talent at ever younger ages.

United signed Gambian winger Yankuba Minteh (pictured at the top of this article) as an 18-year-old in June 2023, he was slightly further along his young career than Omar Marong and Alieu Saine. Minteh had played a relative handful of matches for Danish club Odense before moving to Newcastle United for a reported £7m transfer fee. He spent a year on loan at Feyenoord before a PSR forced sale for £33m to Brighton before he’d even played a single minute of football for Newcastle.

Newcastle United now with a month to check out at close quarters the raw talent of Omar Marong and Alieu Saine, before then deciding if they want to sign the duo.