Eddie Howe addressed the media for the first time this summer after Newcastle United were held 1-1 by non-League near-neighbours Gateshead in a friendly match on Saturday.The Newcastle head coach admitted he did not know what will happen with Bruno Guimaraes, who has indicated that he wishes to join Arsenal, the Premier League champions. But Howe reiterated that he wanted Guimaraes, his team captain, to stay.He also talked about the “painful” sales of Sandro Tonali and Anthony Gordon to Tottenham Hotspur and Barcelona respectively earlier this summer, but expressed positivity about Newcastle’s new trading model.Luke Supyk opened the scoring for Gateshead, who play in the fifth-tier National League, in the 34th minute, completely against the run of play. In the 79th minute, Newcastle finally equalised when a Lewis Hall cross was diverted into his own net by Ben Williams.Sean Steur and Ewen Jaouen, two of Newcastle’s summer signings, made their first appearances in front of supporters.Chris Waugh and George Caulkin analyse the key talking points.What is the latest on Guimaraes’ future?There was no Guimaraes at the International Stadium today, of course. Like the rest of Newcastle’s World Cup contingent, the Brazil international has been given an extended off-season break and is due to return to the club on Friday, July 31. “There’s nothing to say Bruno won’t be back training with us,” Howe said.His post-match comments were brief. While there has been plenty of contact from intermediaries, Arsenal have made no official bid for the 28-year-old and Newcastle have no interest in selling. They need Guimaraes, which places their valuation in the “irrational” bracket.Howe said he spoke to Guimaraes before, during and after the World Cup and that they were “really good conversations,” but he also admitted he has little control over how this matter gets resolved. “I don’t know what’s going to happen with Bruno’s future,” he said. “That’s for other people to speculate about, but also conversations that I’m not part of.”Was he concerned that this could develop into a saga to rival Alexander Isak’s drawn-out and contentious move to Liverpool last summer, which saw the Sweden striker refuse to train with or play for Newcastle until the move finally happened at the start of September?“I don’t think it’s fair to compare situations and what happened previously,” Howe said. “I think you’ve got to look at it in its own right. Bruno is captain of our football club; he’s been an unbelievable player and person all through the time that we’ve worked together. I speak on behalf of everyone at the football club when I say we absolutely love him, and of course, everyone would want him to stay.”Bruno in action for Brazil against Scotland at the World Cup (Chandan Khanna/Getty Images)The quietly impressive debutantOnly one of Newcastle’s four summer signings to date was named in the starting XI against Gateshead, with Bazoumana Toure and Aladji Bamba yet to start training with their new team and Jaouen, the goalkeeper, on the bench.Steur, an 18-year-old midfielder who joined from Ajax of the Netherlands for a fee potentially rising to €25million (£21.3m; $28.4m), can play as a No 8 or as a No 6 and had already been involved in pre-season training with the Eredivisie side before his move to England.In Howe’s preferred 4-3-3 system, he was deployed as the central, deep-lying midfielder, with Jacob Ramsey to his right and Joe Willock, who Besiktas of Turkey are interested in, to the Dutchman’s right.It was immediately evident how comfortable Steur is on the ball, willing to play it forward with either foot. Demanding possession, directing his new team-mates and dropping into full-back spaces, he regularly looked to be progressive and play between the lines.Physically, Steur requires significant development, and Newcastle knew that was the case when they signed him. The teenager needs to bulk up, and it may take him time to adapt to the rigours of English football.But there are no questions at all about Steur’s mentality. He is a confident individual, someone who impressed staff with his belief in himself, and is determined to be more than a bit-part player during his debut campaign on Tyneside. He has a high ceiling. “He can be really pleased with his performance,” Howe said.Jaouen, meanwhile, came on in the 69th minute, with the 20-year-old goalkeeper replacing Nick Pope.Just as Newcastle lacked a cutting edge up front with none of their three senior strikers present, acquiring a new first-choice goalkeeper remains a priority. Pope could arguably have done better for Gateshead’s goal, but Jaouen basically had nothing at all to do in his time on the pitch.Newcastle youngster Park Seung-soo in action against Gateshead (Ed Sykes/Getty Images)Transfers in and out…Howe did not hide his disappointment over the sales of Gordon and Tonali.“We don’t want to lose our best players,” he said. “That’s an obvious statement to make. So losing those big two was painful for us and difficult. So for me, it’s been another challenging summer so far. But we’re always trying to do our best for the football club, short and long term, and to get the squad into its best shape.”Newcastle are targeting younger players this summer. As well as Steur and Jaouen, Toure and Bamba are both 20 years old.“I’m very supportive of what the club wants to do,” Howe said. “Yeah, there’s been a shift in terms of the profile and the age and, again, that’s quite obvious. I’ve always believed in young players and tried to develop young players, so that fits in line with my philosophy anyway.”Defensive midfielder Bamba this week became Newcastle’s fourth senior signing of the summer, joining from Monaco of France’s Ligue 1 for €40million.“Bamba will bring unique qualities,” Howe said. “He’s a lovely size and good technically, but I think as with all the signings that we’ve made this summer, he’s going to need a little bit of time and patience.“We all need to be very supportive to the players that have come in. I don’t think we can put too much pressure on them. I think it’s part of my job to try and take the pressure off them and just allow them to develop.”Tributes to ‘King Kev’The cathedral on the hill has become a shrine; a place of worship for the man Newcastle supporters still refer to as their “Messiah”.Kevin Keegan represented the club over three spells, electrifying the club when he signed as a player in 1982 and saving them from oblivion when he returned as manager a decade later.By Saturday morning, a temporary tribute for Keegan, who died this week aged 75, around the statues of Alan Shearer and Sir Bobby Robson outside St James’ Park, had become an ocean of love; black and white shirts and scarves, pictures and cards and flowers spelling out “King Kev” and “Legend”.Tributes to Kevin Keegan outside St James’ Park (George Caulkin/The Athletic)A thick ring of people stood around the corner of the ground’s Gallowgate and Milburn stands, lost in contemplation. Others queued at the box office to sign a book of condolence. Keegan was born in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, but he was the son of a Geordie, and nobody has better understood the potential of this club and the rhythms of this city.There was a minute’s silence for Keegan ahead of the Gateshead fixture and a banner held up on the pitch which read: “Rest in Peace Kevin Keegan 1951-2026.” Newcastle will mark his passing throughout the rest of the summer and at their opening game of the Premier League season against visitors Liverpool, another club he graced, on August 23.Keegan’s loss can only provoke profound sadness. He delivered Newcastle United from ingrained mediocrity, led them into the Premier League and made an entire club think about itself differently. Yet, for all those reasons, sadness is also inadequate. Keegan made Newcastle dream and pre-season is made for dreaming (just forget today’s result).Are any of the under-21s ready to break through?In short, probably not.Sean Neave, the 19-year-old striker, Alex Murphy, the 22-year-old defender, and Leo Shahar, the 19-year-old full-back, all started against Gateshead and have regularly trained with the first team long term. They were all decent, with Neave busy up front, but in all likelihood, each of that trio would benefit from going out on loan in the coming season.Multiple under-21 players then came on during the second half, including Miodrag Pivas, the 21-year-old defender, Park Seung-soo, the 19-year-old winger, and Mason Miley, the 17-year-old younger brother of fellow Newcastle midfielder Lewis.None were afforded enough time on the pitch to really impress and, at this early stage of pre-season, the second-string players are largely filling gaps in the squad. All of Newcastle’s summer signings so far are aged 20 or under, so Howe is already working with a young player pool.