Former Newcastle United man seals late Premier League transfer - 12 days after deadline

Former Newcastle United full-back Kevin Mbabu has joined Swiss Super League side Servette on loan for the rest of the season.

The 27-year-old only joined Fulham last summer from Wolfsburg but has struggled to force his way into the starting XI. He’s made just seven appearances with Kenny Tete, Bobby De Cordova-Reid and loan signing Cedric Soaraes ahead in the pecking order.

Mbabu’s last outing was at Manchester City in November, and he hasn’t featured in a matchday squad since the World Cup break. The defender had hoped to seal an exit in January but has had to wait - 12 days after the window slammed shut.

As per The Athletic, Mbabu has agreed a move to Servette and is in Geneva ahead of his medical. The winter transfer window in Switzerland began on January 16 and closes on February 15.

Mbabu came through the academy at Servette before joining Newcastle in 2013. The Switzerland international spent four years on Tyneside and made five appearances before being sold by Rafa Benitez.

He reflected on his time on Tyneside during a 2021 interview with The Athletic as he described his determination to prove the Magpies wrong for allowing him to leave when he had shown plenty of promise.

Mbabu said: “I had an offer from Young Boys and I didn’t want to go back to Switzerland, but then I thought: ‘OK, go back, get back on track. Take a little step back but maybe one day, you’ll get rewarded for that’. So I just did it.

“When I left Newcastle, I had it in my head that, ‘I’m going to prove them all wrong, to show them it was a mistake to let me go’. That’s what I’ve been trying to do this whole time.”

After a two-year spell in the his country, Mbabu earned a move to Bundesliga club Wolfsburg and his form in Germany eventually led to interest from several clubs that were reportedly keen to bring the full-back back to the Premier League.

There were suggestions Manchester United were ready to make a move but it was Fulham that secured Mbaby when they agreed a £6.4m deal with Wolfsburg ahead of their return to English football’s top tier last summer.