Newcastle United have signed 19-year-old defender Miodrag Pivas from Jedinstvo Ub.
The Serb, who can also play as a defensive midfielder, becomes the Magpies' fifth recruit of the summer transfer window.
✍️ We are delighted to announce the signing of promising Serbian defender Miodrag Pivaš from FK Jedinstvo Ub.
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) July 20, 2024
Welcome to Newcastle United, Miodrag! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/KLRwBQ5edh
“My best strengths are my pace, being a centre-back, as well as my heading and passing ability," Pivas told the official club website.
“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.
“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."
Who is Miodrag Pivas?
Born on 17 May 2005 in Novi Sad, Serbia, Pivas spent the majority of his youth career in Austria. He started with UFC Siezenheim Youth in 2018 before moving to Grodig Youth a year later.
He spent two years in the Grodig youth set-up before making the step up to their senior team. In July 2023 he moved back to his native Serbia as he joined Jedinstvo on a free transfer, going on to make 25 appearances for them last season.
Pivas, who has represented Serbia at Under-17 level, could feature for Newcastle in their first pre-season fixture against Hull City on 27 July. The Magpies start their Premier League campaign on Saturday 17 August against Southampton.