Rob Elliot believes Mikel Merino 
has the potential to develop into a top-class midfielder - and is adamant the Spaniard can fulfil all his ambitions with Newcastle United.
Players such as Yohan Cabaye and Andros Townsend departed St James’ Park in order to further their careers, but Elliot insists Newcastle is no longer a “stepping-stone club”.
Instead, Merino - who celebrated signing permanently for United earlier this month by rising from the bench to head in Newcastle’s winner in a 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace on Saturday - can fulfil his potential on Tyneside under Rafa Benitez’s tutelage, particularly if Mike Ashley’s desire to sell the club becomes a reality.
Even if Real Madrid or Barcelona do come calling, Elliot stresses Newcastle’s desire to become a “top club” in their own right means Merino departing to such world-renowned sides would not be a given.
“Isaac [Hayden] did brilliantly scoring last week and now Micky [Merino] has come on and done brilliantly,” Elliot said of the 21-year-old midfielder.
“It’s great because it shows in every position you’ve got to perform. It’s brilliant news he’s signed permanently - it’s great for the club that such a talented young player has committed himself.
“He’s very, very good. You can see from his performances the talent he has. There’s no reason why he can’t go on to play at the very top. I certainly see no reason why not.
“At the moment he is our player and we have to make sure he takes us to the top. We’ve now got a brilliant bunch of midfielders and one of them is having to miss out every week.
“I certainly see him [Merino] in a bracket where clubs like that [Real and Barcelona] come into it, considering his age.
“It’s only a matter of time before the very top clubs come looking at him, but we want to be a top club, too.
“We want him to stay here, we don’t want to see any of our top players up for sale again. That is the mentality now. We bring them through, the manager is here.
“He’s a fantastic signing from the manager and the scouting department and hopefully we’ll just see him develop as a player and he fulfils all that potential at Newcastle.”
Former Magpies Cabaye and Townsend returned to Tyneside on Saturday and the former in particular cited the Magpies’ lack of ambition to really compete at the top of the Premier League as having convinced him to leave for Paris Saint-Germain in January 2014.
But Republic of Ireland international goalkeeper Elliot insists that, with Benitez at the helm, Newcastle are no longer viewed as a stepping-stone club.
“This club is definitely not a stepping-stone club any more and it should never be. Those days are gone now,” Elliot added.
“The players here are all young, all hungry, but most importantly they are all wanting to play for this club.
“Last year, players left the Premier League to come and play for this club in the Championship and that shows the size of us and also the fact the manager is here, the age of the players coming in, they’re here to develop and get better and take the club forward.
“We’re now in the top half of the league and we can keep developing that, not just for this season but hopefully for more to come.”