A warning for Newcastle United – The best things in life are (rarely) free | OneFootball

Free transfers and Newcastle United are now making the headlines.

This is a staple diet for lazy NUFC journalists around this time of year, EVERY year.

Simply listing all the Premier League players whose contracts are set to run out that summer, as well as certain players who are in a similar situation with clubs on mainland Europe.

It is an easy cut and paste year on year for said lazy journalists, simply change the names of the players to those who this time are seeing their contracts running down.

This time though, as well as the usual lazy repeat from the various media, Newcastle United DO look like they may well be intending to try and sign one or more free transfers.

The two names heading up that claimed interest in free transfers, are Lloyd Kelly and Tosin Adarabioyo. Both set to be out of contract at the end of June, both seemingly set to leave their respective clubs, both central defenders and one right footed the other left, Newcastle United could do with a couple of central defenders – especially with Lascelles and Botman long-term injuries, free transfers would very much help in terms of the overall NUFC finances and player trading this summer.

So what could possibly go wrong?

Well, I am not saying that anything would automatically go wrong, if indeed Newcastle United landed one or both of these free transfers this summer, or indeed any other free transfers.

However… a cautionary word of warning, the best things in life are (rarely) free.

Players usually end up being free transfers for one or more of these three reasons: they are hopeless, they are knackered, or of dubious character – having cynically ran down their contracts in order to get far bigger wages at their next club (due to no transfer fee to be paid).

You get the very occasional one where circumstances have conspired and / or a club rewards a great servant by letting them move on with no transfer fee to pay, enabling them to maximise their personal terms elsewhere.

What I would say though, these are very much exceptions to the rule.

I don’t think Lloyd Kelly and Tosin Adarabioyo are hopeless, though whether they are good enough for what Eddie Howe requires, I have no idea. Tosin (as I am calling him from now on!) has impressed me more than Kelly, on the little I have seen of the pair, the little I have taken notice of. They are aged 25 and 26 respectively and no massive injury issues I am aware of, so I don’t think they are knackered. As to how and why their contracts have ended up running down to leave a situation where they can now leave for nothing, I have no idea on that front.

However, what I do know, is that Steve Bruce told us that he and Mike Ashley had pulled off two audacious brilliant free transfers in summer 2020 AND Newcastle United are still paying for it!

Leaving aside the reasons why they become free transfers, one thing certainly rings true when getting players on a free. You have to be willing to pay higher wages than would normally be the case, with their ‘free’ transfer status meaning they expect to get their cut of that ‘saving’ for their new club.

Signing players on higher wages than they are really worth, isn’t a problem, unless of course the players end up proving to be poor signings. Basically, which other club is going to match those higher than they are really worth wages, never mind paying a transfer fee?

Well, in the case of Ryan Fraser and Jeff Hendrick, we know the answer to that. No one!!!

Yes Ashley’s puppet Bruce told us what bargains they had landed, two high quality Premier League level players signed for ‘nothing’.

Jeff Hendrick given higher than his true value wages for four years, Ryan Fraser getting five years worth.

Hendrick very much in the nowhere near Premier League quality category for me, whilst I was disgusted when we signed Fraser, after the shameful way he had treated Eddie Howe and Bournemouth. Howe was the total professional after having the bad luck to be landed with Fraser again, however, even Howe couldn’t put up with him and for unpublicised reasons, ended up sending him to train with the kids.

Despite going out on loan to second tier clubs this season, Newcastle United are still paying most of the wages for Fraser and Hendrick.

Between them, they have only managed 18 starts in the Championship this season. Hendrick with five for Sheffield Wednesday even though they have been fighting relegation, whilst Fraser 13 league starts for Southampton. That sums it up totally.

Thankfully we see Jeff Hendrick end his four year NUFC contract next month, four years of massive wages (compared to his contribution and ability) in return for only 17 Premier League starts since summer 2020.

Whilst sadly we face yet another year of paying Ryan Fraser, unless paying him off to go away. Either way, it will be five years worth of wages in return for 30 Premier League starts (and two goals!). Back in summer 2020, there were media claims of Hendrick getting a £50,000 a week deal and Fraser a £60,000 a week one. If true, that would mean £25m in wages for the pair on their Newcastle United contracts. So much for free transfers!

Going back further, these were the free transfers that Newcastle United brought in under Mike Ashley over the course of a decade (2010-2020):

Dan Gosling, Sol Campbell, Shefki Kuqi, Sylvain Marveaux, Demba Ba, Mehdi Abeid, Jack Colback, Jesus Gamez, Ki Sung-yeung, Andy Carroll, Mark Gillespie, Ryan Fraser, Jeff Hendrick.

It makes a depressing read with not many success stories.

The only stand out success was Demba Ba, 29 goals in 51 Premier League starts. However, after arriving on a free due to a contract clause when West Ham were relegated, as he quickly started knocking in the goals and kept asking  for a pay rise after having proved himself, Mike Ashley kept saying no. Only 18 months later, he left to sit on Chelsea’s bench, the West London club willing to pay him market rate wages and Demba Ba triggering a release clause for a £7.5m transfer.

Other than Ba, it is a sorry tale.

Newcastle signed Andy Carroll and he scored one goal in 37 Premier League appearances when returning. Though it sums it up when looking at the list of free transfers above, Carroll probably isn’t too far off the runners-up spot!

The likes of Mark Gillespie and Loris Karius (signed by Eddie Howe) at least make sense as back up keepers on a budget, to help give you more of a squad, but no more than that.

As for Lloyd Kelly and Tosin Adarabioyo, if they sign for Newcastle United then like every other signing, I will welcome them wholeheartedly. However, history tells us that if they do prove a success as free transfers, they they will be an exception (or two) to the rule at St James’ Park.