Forgotten Newcastle United man pictured in pre-season set for exit as interest emerges

Kell Watts is set to leave Newcastle United this summer with Wigan Athletic among the clubs to register their interest.

The 23-year-old was back at the club’s Benton training centre on Sunday morning for the first day of pre-season after returning from an injury-plagued loan spell at Peterborough United.

Watts joined the League One side last summer when he was still recovering from a knee injury and made just five starts before a hamstring issue saw him miss the rest of the campaign.

The Alnwick-born defender could feature for Eddie Howe’s first-team during pre-season, like he did last year before knee surgery, but is expected to leave come the end of the summer transfer window.

As reported by Wigan Today, The Latics are keen to bring Watts back to the DW Stadium. Watts was part of the Wigan side that lifted the League One title in 2021-22. In total, he made 26 appearances.

Watts has come through the youth ranks at Newcastle and has made one competitive appearance - a cameo against Liverpool at St James’ Park in July 2020.

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The defender has also spent time on loan at Stevenage, Mansfield Town and Plymouth Argyle to reach 100 Football League appearances.

His contract expires in 2024, meaning Newcastle will need to decide whether to offload him permanently or loan him out for the final year of his deal.