Hearts loan target Garang Kuol is a wanted man and it's no wonder after what Xavi said about him after he "ripped Barca to shreds".
The 18-year-old signed for Newcastle United at the start of the window, but the Magpies are keen to give him some game time and the Tynecastle side are eager to acquire his services for the rest of the season. Kuol has been spotted at Oriam to have a looked around the facilities and Robbie Neilson admitted he was keen to bring the Aussie international north of the border.
Kuol's stock has been rising ever since he joined A-League outfit Central Coast Mariners two years ago and the highlight came when he was selected to play for a league all star team against Barcelona last season. Mariners head coach and former Scotland under-21 midfielder Nick Montgomery opened up on what the Barca boss said to him when Kuol faced off against some of the biggest names in football.
Montgomery said: "I put Garang in the first team midway through last season, and he was soon creating havoc against opposition defences in the A-League. Then an A-League All Stars team managed by Dwight Yorke played Barcelona last May.
"Garang came off the bench for them with 30 minutes remaining and just completely ripped Barca to shreds. He literally ran past the whole team about three times and should have scored. Everyone just went, ‘Wow, this kid is unbelievable’ — including Xavi.
"Garang made some of the world’s best defenders looked like mannequins. That’s not easy to do, but that is when the interest from Barcelona came. Xavi said, ‘This kid is really special’. When you’ve got someone like him talking like that then it’s pretty obvious these clubs are going to show some interest.
"And from that moment the biggest clubs in the world started looking at Kuol too, including Newcastle."
While Montgomery said playing in the SPFL would come as a "shock" to Kuol due to the difference in style in Australia. He told The Scottish Sun: "Playing in the Scottish Premiership would be a shock to him because it’s more physical than the A-League. The weather is different and the fans are more passionate, so there will be greater pressure."
Kuol featured against Argentina and France in Qatar for the Socceroos. He would join fellow Aussie internationals Kye Rowles, who also played for Central Coast Mariners, Nathanial Atkinson and Cammy Devlin at Tynecastle.
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