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Newcastle have agreed terms with Melbourne Heart for 19 year-old defender Curtis Good, according to Melbourne newspaper The Whittlesea Leader and others. Good, who is left-footed and usually plays center back, will report to the NUFC training ground to complete a medical Wednesday evening. The following quote from Heart manager John Aloisi is encouraging not only for its content, but also because it confirms the story:
It’s a fantastic opportunity for Curtis. Newcastle United is one of the biggest clubs in the United Kingdom, and we are absolutely delighted he has the opportunity to test his wares on such a stage. While Curtis will certainly be missed, his proposed transfer is a great affirmation of our youth policy, and a demonstration of the Club’s ability to assist in developing players to such an extent that they’re able to move to one of Europe’s leading competitions.
More after the jump.
Good was brought in as a trialist for 2 weeks in May and he reportedly impressed Alan Pardew, leading to speculation that Newcastle was working with the A-League side to work out a deal. Initial reports were that the Toon were looking to pay 400,000 AUD, and true to form, they haggled for a month before eventually settling on 600K.
It should be noted that Good is rather inexperienced, having joined Heart in the latter half of 2011, though Newcastle fans accustomed to Chief Scout Graham Carr's methods will be slow to pass judgment on the player based on that fact. Good stands at 6'1", so quite a bit shorter than Mike Williamson, but he's apparently got quite a Jose for picking the ball out of the air. Reports from earlier in the summer seemed to suggest that he could possibly break into the senior squad with a nice preseason, but this move may have happened a little late in the game to make that a reality. A suggestion for the young Mr. Good: Pardew loves versatile players, and this team needs a left back. Learn to play multiple positions and you'll be playing against your boyhood hero in no time.
There's lots of unknown with this kid, but for the price, it's certainly a risk well worth taking, in my opinion. One thing's for sure: there will be no shortage of dreadful puns in this morning's newspapers.