I have named my Newcastle United eleven below, interested to hear what you think in the commenting section after you have seen my own personal team of players.
I would argue that few things frustrate football fans more than watching a talented player being shipped off to fulfil their potential elsewhere.
Homegrown talent Elliott Anderson’s transfer to Nottingham Forest, and the potential sale of honorary Geordie Bruno Guimaraes, got me thinking about the strongest Newcastle United XI made up of players the club sold too soon.
Newcastle have experienced their fair share of premature departures over the years – whether a young star sold before they reach their peak, or a fan favourite sacrificed for solely financial reasons.
With this in mind, here’s a Newcastle United XI (4-3-3) made up of players the club arguably sold far too soon:
Goalkeeper…
Shay Given
Newcastle’s greatest Premier League goalkeeper was sold to Manchester City in 2009 just before the club’s relegation. Given continued to perform well for a few years before being sidelined due to injury and replaced in the starting XI by Joe Hart.
Defenders…
Aaron Hughes
Hughes came up through the Newcastle United ranks and became a mainstay in the team in the early 2000s. A very versatile defender who could play across the back four, Hughes would later be sold to Aston Villa for £1m by a clueless Graeme Souness as he was deemed surplus to requirements.
Jose Enrique
Newcastle have not been blessed with many fantastic left-backs over the years. However, Enrique filled this void excellently. Enrique developed into a fine Premier League left-back at St James’s Park – winning the club’s Player of the Year award for the 2009/10 Championship-winning campaign – later leaving for Liverpool in 2011.
John Beresford
Beresford and Barton both played a significant role in ‘The Entertainers’ side of the 90s. A solid full-back for the Magpies, Beresford featured 180 times, one of the high points when scoring twice in a Champions League match away against Dynamo Kiev to earn United a 2-2 draw, that 1997 match played in front of 100,000 fans. He was later sold to Southampton in 1998 after falling out of favour under Dalglish.
Frank Clark
Clark played over 400 games for the Magpies and played a part in Newcastle’s Inter-Cities Fairs Cup Final victory. It is reported that Clark was let go by the Newcastle hierarchy as he was deemed to be ‘too old’ at age 31. He went on to sign for Brian Clough’s Nottingham Forest side where he won a European Cup.
Midfielders…
Elliot Anderson
Anderson’s sale to Nottingham Forest was driven more by PSR than footballing reasons. The Geordie talent is currently anchoring England’s midfield at the World Cup and recently signed for Manchester City for a reported (eye watering) sum of £116m.
Nolberto Solano
The definition of a cult hero and a club legend. Solano was one of the most popular players to have worn the black and white stripes. After a reported falling out with manager Sir Bobby Robson and the emergence of other players such as Lee Bowyer, Solano was sold for £1.5m to Aston Villa.
Peter Beardsley
The ‘Geordie Genius’, Beardsley was sold by Newcastle for a then British record fee of £1.9m to Liverpool. Newcastle was in need of extra funds and the Beardsley deal eased their financial pressures. A tremendous player who was a star and supremely talented.
Attackers…
David Ginola
Ginola was a key part of the ‘The Entertainers’ side. He left Newcastle due to reported disagreements with Dalglish and then starred for Tottenham, winning both the PFA Players’ Player of the Year and FWA Footballer of the Year awards.
Issue 80 – August 1995
Les Ferdinand
Ferdinand’s stay at St James’ Park was just too short. Ferdinand’s return for Newcastle was incredible, netting 50 goals across two seasons. Had he stayed alongside Shearer for longer, the Magpies could have boasted the Premier League’s greatest ever strike partnership.
Demba Ba
A bit of a rogue inclusion but Ba was arguably Newcastle’s best forward throughout the 2010s (before Isak was signed). Ba scored 16 goals in his debut season and then 12 goals to midway through the 2012/13 season. Losing a striker of his quality so cheaply (due to a £7.5m release clause in his contract) to Premier League rivals Chelsea was very frustrating.
Thoughts? Any changes that could be made?