Newcastle United complete Premier League swoop after Leeds United & Wolves appearances

The 16-year-old was recently on trial at Newcastle having appeared as a substitute in under-18s matches against Wolverhampton Wanderers and Leeds United.

And according to The Secret Scout, that was enough to earn the left-sided defender a youth contract. A post read: “2008 born left sided centre back Aaron Epia has signed a contract with Newcastle United after leaving Everton. 16-year-old Apia has represented Poland national team. He can also represent England and Nigeria Newcastle’s youth project continuing to grow.”

NewcastleWorld understands Epia was offered a new contract by the Toffees but opted to move to the North East.

The Magpies have already bolstered their youth ranks this summer with the arrival of highly-rated midfielder CJ Afumuzor from Portsmouth. The South Coast club are entitled to a transfer fee after the 14-year-old spent eight years on their books.

Meanwhile, United are also closing in on the signing of Rory Finneran from Blackburn Rovers. The Republic of Ireland under-17s international was named on the bench for Blackburn’s Championship clash against Bristol City in December before making his senior debut in an FA Cup tie versus Cambridge United a month later.

Finneran is Rovers’ youngest-ever debutant at 15-years-old, 10 months and eight days. He has attracted interest from a number of clubs, including some in Germany, but Newcastle are set to win the race, subject to agreeing a fee with the Lancashire outfit.

Newcastle have a strong Irish contingent in their academy with Alex Murphy, Reece Byrne and Cathal Heffernan among those to arrive in the past two years.