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Newcastle starlet Bigirimana milking his moment

Gael Bigirimana has made eight appearances for Newcastle so far this season © PA Photos

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Newcastle's 19-year-old starlet Gael Bigirimana will be handed his ninth appearance for the club when the Magpies meet Club Brugge in the Europa League on Thursday, and the teenager has recalled the bizarre order of events that led to his breakthrough into professional football.

Bigirimana is tipped for a big future by boss Alan Pardew, who is already marvelling at the athleticism and thirst to succeed that exists in the young talent.

However, Bigirimana may never have found his way to Newcastle had he not been sent out by his mum at the age of 10 to buy a bottle of milk. The Burundi-born teenager, who has been likened to Cheik Tiote for his style of football, explains:

"One day, my mum sent me and my brother to get some milk, and there was an Asda near where the Coventry youth team trained," he said in the Daily Mirror.

"Me and my brother were walking back and I heard a voice inside me say, 'Go and ask to train with them.' I told my brother what I was thinking and he said, 'No, you'll have to pay to train there. It is not as easy as that.

"I said to him, 'Fine, I'll do that' and asked my mum for some money to go over to the training ground. She thought I wanted the money to go and buy sweets or chocolate or whatever. She told me she didn't have the money.

"But I still went to the training ground and asked for God to be with me, and asked for everything for them to say yes, I could train with them. I went to the reception but my English wasn't very good so they sent me to the two scouts, Ray Gooding and Reece Brown.

"They said to me you can't just come and train with Coventry straight away, we have to come and watch you. I told them I didn't even have a team, or a school team because I've just moved to England. They said when I got to school and got in the team they would come and watch me and I was happy - I was overjoyed.

"But when I was jogging away, they stopped me then and there and told me to come back the next day. They have explained to me since that they saw athletic speed - but I was not really running! I went on trial for five months, then signed and everything went from good, to great, to better."

Newcastle currently top Group D on four points in the Europa League, but Club Brugge are only a point behind. It is expected that Pardew will field both Ameobi brothers, Shola and Sammy, as the Magpies bid to strengthen their European bid on Thursday.

Newcastle player to watch: It would be wrong of us to feature the young talent Gael Bigirimana without then singling him out as the one to watch. Pardew can do little wrong since joining Newcastle, earning him an astonishing eight-year contract, so will he be right in predicting that Bigirimana will soon become a household name in English football?

Club Brugge player to watch: Jonathan Blondel earned 21 caps for Belgium Under-21s and once had a trial at Manchester United. However, his move to Tottenham in 2002 proved a flop after he made two appearances, so he will be keen to prove something on English soil.

Betting: Shola Ameobi was hugely frustrated to be taken off in the first half of the derby match with Sunderland after Newcastle were forced to reshuffle with 10 men. Tip him to ease that anger with the only goal in a 1-0 win at 20/1 with bet365.

Prediction: 1-0

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