What 'crazy' Eddie Howe personally did to secure bright prospect hints at future Newcastle plan

Joe White has revealed that Eddie Howe helped convince him to sign a new contract at Newcastle United after the head coach gave the youngster the 'reassurance' he needed to commit his future to the club.

White's original contract was due to run out this summer, but the highly-rated attacking midfielder has now signed a new three-year deal to end speculation about his future. White has now followed in the footsteps of fellow academy products Kell Watts and Max Thompson, who have also signed new deals since Howe came in.

While Howe will spend money on new players in the summer, the Magpies' boss is conscious of the need to bridge the gap between the academy and first team with the likes of White moving forward. Howe was keen to take a closer look at White when he took charge last November and the youngster even made the bench on occasion before being allowed to go out on loan to Hartlepool United in the mid-season window to get some first-team experience.

White has since made his professional debut for Pools and is now looking to push on ahead of returning for pre-season training with Newcastle in the summer.

"I think one of the main reasons was the new manager coming in," White told the club's website. "As soon as he joined, I was training with the first team every day, which was one of the things that I wanted.

"From what I've seen in training and how much the team has improved in a short space of time, which you can see in the recent performances and results, it helped massively with my decision to stay.

"He's spoken to me personally a few times and mentioned that he already knew me before he came here. It's important for me to trust him and have a plan of what I'm going to do in the future and what he wants from me,