Newcastle United secure services of young defender Miodrag Pivas

Newcastle [UK], July 20 (ANI): Premier League club Newcastle United announced the signing of young Serbian centre-back Miodrag Pivas from FK Jedinstvo Ub.

The 19-year-old has represented Serbia at the under-17 level. His versatility allows him to pivot from a defensive spot to a defensive midfield position.

Last season, he helped Jedinstvo finish as runners-up in the second tier and clinch promotion to the Serbian Super Liga.

After signing for the club he expressed his delight and told newcastleunited.com, “It’s absolutely unbelievable to join such a big club like Newcastle United, and I cannot wait to get started. I see the project of the club, and it looks great, which helped convince me to sign for Newcastle.”

“I see the young players have developed very well here, and I would like to do the same – to develop and get into Newcastle’s first team. I’m very excited, and I can’t wait to begin,” he added.

Pivas went on to reveal the attributes that make him a threat and said, “My best strengths are my pace, being a centre-back, as well as my heading and passing ability.”

Still, at the age of 19, Pivas is looking to break into Newcastle United’s first-team setup and show his true potential.

“I want to start playing for the first team as soon as possible and show what I can do. I’ve watched a lot of Newcastle’s games, they are playing very well and I believe I can play at that level,” he said.

“I won promotion last season, and it was amazing, getting to the top tier in Serbia. It was an incredible feeling, and I learnt a lot playing as a centre-back because of my manager (Ivan Radovanovic), who played in Serie A for 15 years and was quite important to me,” he added.

Darren Eales, CEO at Newcastle United, believes that Pivas has the potential to do well, and they will support the youngster to achieve success in his career.

“Miodrag is a promising talent with high potential. Our recruitment network is continuing to watch young players like Miodrag around the world with a view to identifying and developing them into first team players of the future. We are pleased to welcome him to Newcastle United and we look forward to supporting his development at this important stage of his career,” he said.