Newcastle United midfielder Sean Longstaff has confessed that he was "distracted" by talk of a potential transfer to Manchester United over the summer.
The English ace was heavily linked with a ÂŁ30 million ($37m) switch to Old Trafford while the transfer window was open, but a final deal never came to fruition.
Longstaff burst onto the Premier League scene last season, impressing in nine appearances for Newcastle before being struck down with a knee ligament injury in March.
He showed enough promise to catch Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's eye in Manchester, with the Norwegian boss favouring a transfer policy of targeting young, homegrown talent.
Longstaff ultimately ended up staying at St James' Park, but he found it difficult to concentrate on his pre-season duties amid swirling rumours over his future.
He has now revealed that Magpies teammate Matt Ritchie played a key role in helping him block out the ongoing speculation.
âYou can sometimes get distracted by the outside noise and maybe for a little bit in the summer I was a bit,â Longstaff told Newcastle's official website.
âItâs hard not to whenever you go anywhere you see your face on the front of a newspaper and you turn the telly on people are talking about you. And itâs not like theyâre talking about little things, theyâre talking about things that can change your life really.
âThe expectation is half what Iâve done and itâs probably a good thing. It does just go to show I did impress people when I got my chance last year. So for me, itâs about not listening to them and sticking to what I do. I speak to Matty Ritchie a lot, heâs someone I lean on in the squad. He tends to keep us grounded and heâs always there with good bits of advice.
âSometimes you can get distracted by figures that are thrown out there and youâre doing things you wouldnât normally try to do. I think I spoke to him about it and he said the reason people are speaking about you is because of what you did and keep everything so simple and ticking along and youâve got the other stuff there if you need it."
The talented young star claims he has not yet returned to the same level he reached last season, despite earning a regular place in Steve Bruce's set up.
âIâm not back to where I was last year but Iâm getting closer and closer and I think itâs just about working hard and getting back to that level," Longstaff said. "The outside noise is something I try not to listen to. Itâs always going to be there now â thereâll be more eyes on me now.â
Ahead of Newcastle's trip to Anfield to face Liverpool on Saturday, Longstaff insisted he still needs to cut out moments of âsloppiness on the ballâ, adding: "Iâm only going to get back to that level with games and itâs going to take a bit of time. The kind of person I am, I want to be there straight away.
âThe manager has given us that reassurance itâs going to take a bit of time. I know thereâs things I can do better but itâs all learning and Iâm still young. Iâm still enjoying it, Iâm still going to keep working hard on the pitch."