'Forgotten' Newcastle United players could hand Eddie Howe £15m transfer bonus

Newcastle United may have to sell in order to fully invest this summer, with several players on the peripheries of the squad at risk of being moved on.

The bolstering of the squad that has been undertaken under the new ownership has seen several of the old guard of days gone by shifted far down the pecking order, seeing loan spells into the Football League with varying degrees of success to secure minutes elsewhere.

Failing to shift on assets for a fee has been a running theme over the last couple of seasons, with another five players being moved on in the last few weeks generating no additional revenue adding to the same situation with the likes of Dwight Gayle, Yoshinori Muto, Federico Fernandez, Christian Atsu and Javier Manquillo in past windows. Here are some ‘forgotten’ players Newcastle should look to move on this summer.

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Jamal Lewis

Offered a five-year contract when he signed in 2020 after showing promise at Norwich, Jamal Lewis has went on to feature just 31 times for Newcastle in the last four seasons - though he nailed down a starting spot during his loan spell at Watford in 2023/24, he did not impress Tom Cleverly enough to exercise the option to make the deal permanent.

January 2022 perhaps perfectly reflects on Lewis’ time on Tyneside. The first window after the takeover saw several incomings, including Bruno Guimaraes and Kieran Trippier, taking Toon over their 25-man threshold - meaning the Northern Irishman was removed from the playing squad for the remainder of the season.

Last featuring for the Mags in the disappointing 2-1 defeat against Sheffield Wednesday in the FA Cup Third Round in January 2023, it is unlikely that we see the 26-year-old in black-and-white again, and - with his contract expiring this time next year - this is the final opportunity to recoup a portion of the £15million investment.

Isaac Hayden

Isaac Hayden is another that didn’t make the cut for the 25-man squad in January 2022 alongside Lewis, though in this case the now 29-year-old would have been on the sidelines regardless after suffering a knee injury in December 2021 in what has become a recurring issue.

After the conclusion of last season, Eddie Howe said he could not “anticipate” Hayden returning to his first team plans. That has ultimately proved true, with the midfielder failing to feature over the course of the last campaign, starting out on an unsuccessful loan spell with Standard Liege Hayden returned to England and spent the second half of the season with Queens Park Rangers.

A string of impressive performances at Loftus Road has seen Hayden’s stock rise, and has made his eight-year stay with Toon likely to come to an end over the coming month with several Championship sides said to be interested in securing his services. Reports have circulated that Hayden may be granted an early release from his contract, but at the very least it clears a chunk of the wage bill.

Ryan Fraser

Howe has kept it no secret that Ryan Fraser isn’t a part of his future plans after a dispute between the two behind the scenes saw the Scotsman training with the under-21 squad in March 2023, before being sent to Southampton on loan in the season just gone.

Fraser has enjoyed a degree of success on the south coast, netting six times in the Championship and twice in the 4-0 drubbing of Walsall in the FA Cup - and according to reports from The Athletic, the deal sending the 30-year-old to the Saints permanently is almost completed with just a few minor details to be settled.

Arriving to Newcastle on a free transfer and handed a five-year contract, Fraser is rumoured to be on over £40,000 a week. The return on that investment is just 30 Premier League starts during an unimpressive stint in the north east.

Matt Targett

The Matt Targett that Newcastle signed on a loan deal was a dependable member of the first team squad, but since becoming a permanent fixture he has played less minutes over the last two seasons than during that initial half-season stint.

Targett last took to the turf in November’s Carabao Cup victory over Manchester United, suffering an injury not long after kick-off that ruled him out until March when he returned to the substitutes bench on a couple of occasions.

Once a surefire name on the team sheet, where the former Aston Villa man would fit into the pecking order is now unclear, with Dan Burn clearly Howe’s preferred choice at left back and with Lewis Hall making his stay in Tyneside permanent - while new boy Lloyd Kelly can also play there when required.