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Newcastle United will not heap any pressure on Adam Armstrong next season as they look to bounce back from relegation.

Some fans feel that Armstrong can be the answer to Geordie prayers as they look for a regular goalscorer in the Sky Bet Championship.

However, Rafa Benitez is wary of asking for too much from the England Under-19 international and will lean on more experienced players to begin with.

Benitez hopes Aleksandar Mitrovic will soon find his rhythm once his four-game ban is over, while Ayoze Perez is another forward who is expected to get a long run in the first team.

And Newcastle are currently trying to land another proven striker that will bolster their squad for the new campaign.

Armstrong has just enjoyed an excellent season at Coventry City after scoring 20 goals under the guidance of Tony Mowbray in League One.

Had Newcastle survived in the Premier League the plan for Armstrong would have been another loan deal to a Championship side, with United keen to see him add to his tally of 40 Football League appearances for Coventry.

But Newcastle’s relegation from the top flight makes it more difficult to loan him out to a club in the same division, as the Magpies wouldn’t want to hand a promotion rival a quality striker on a plate.

There may be scope to send him to one of the division’s less fancied teams, but there are also a host of Scottish Premier League clubs that would be interested in taking him for the season, including Lee Clark’s Kilmarnock.

Armstrong is actually struggling for fitness at the moment after picking up a thigh injury while on duty with England Under-19s, but Newcastle will protect him from the limelight when he returns.

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Benitez resisted the temptation to recall Armstrong from Coventry last season when the Magpies were struggling for positive results and goals in his first few games in charge.

Back then Benitez made it clear that it was the time for experience, not younger players, and as he looks to get the new season off to a great start that is likely to be the case again.

Armstrong’s progress has been rapid in the last couple of years as started out relying on public transport to get to training – commuting from the city’s west end to Benton without being recognised.

But after making his first-team debut in 2014 at Fulham under the guidance of stand-in manager John Carver, with Alan Pardew serving a stadium ban for head-butting David Meyler at Hull, Armstrong’s story began to capture the imagination of the Newcastle fans.

As United looked for results to secure their place in the Premier League in 2015, Carver – by then caretaker manager – didn’t feel the time was right to throw Armstrong in at the deep end.

By the same token, Carver couldn’t loan Armstrong out, knowing he could be just a couple of injuries away from another treatment room crisis.

Newcastle still have high hopes for Armstrong in the years to come but, while there is clearly a temptation to thrust him into straight into the first team next season, Benitez will make a decision in the next month or so to see whether another loan option might be his best bet.