Jay Turner-Cooke is full of pride making his senior breakthrough at Newcastle United.
Turner-Cooke, who joined the Magpies' Academy from Sunderland in January 2021, was introduced from the substitutes' bench in the final minutes of United's 5-0 triumph over Al Hilal, the most decorated club in Asia, at the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium.
"It was an unbelievable feeling," the South Shields-born youngster told nufc.co.uk. "To say I've made my first-team debut for Newcastle is something you dream of as a kid. To do it at such a young age alongside a lot of my idols I grew up watching was a special feeling.
"I was just trying to get a touch on the ball. The manager loves high intensity and I was trying to press from midfield and keep it simple as we were 5-0 up at the time. I thought I did well in the ten minutes.
"It was great to share that moment with a few of the young lads who I've played with for a couple of years in the under-21s group. It was a mad feeling when I was playing against the likes of (Odion) Ighalo in midfield with Joe (White) and Elliot (Anderson).
"I came off the pitch and rang my dad straight after full-time, saying I want this all the time. I want to be playing on this kind of stage in front of thousands and thousands of people. I'm confident in my ability to do that so I need to keep grounded, work hard and hopefully I can gain more chances.
"It was a brilliant experience. It's what you want to do as a kid and trying to better and challenge yourself against the best players. I'm confident in myself that I'm good enough to be there so when I go there, I need to show what I can do and try to impress."