Kevin Nolan reminds Mike Ashley of ‘missed’ Newcastle United opportunity

Signed in January 2009, the former Toon skipper joined a dysfunctional club that was hurtling towards relegation. Nolan’s first five months at St James’ Park saw him work under three different managers before dropping into the Championship.

However, he soon established himself as one of the leaders in the dressing room as Newcastle rebuilt. Now led by Chris Hughton, the Magpies roared to an instant Premier League return, with Nolan bagging 18 goals across all competitions.

Nolan steered Newcastle to a 12th-placed finish the following year and produced moments that are now etched in Geordie folklore. A hat-trick against Sunderland was the first in a Tyne-Wear derby since Peter Beardsley 25 years earlier.

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Other famous moments included captaining the Toon team that inspired a four-goal fightback against Arsenal in February 2011. But with Andy Carroll sold just days earlier, the perennial question about Newcastle’s ambition under Mike Ashley remained.

Nolan was turning 29 in the summer and the club reneged on a four-year contract extension. West Ham United came calling with £4million and that was the end of the now 42-year-old’s love affair on Tyneside.

Reflecting on the experience, Nolan - now in charge of Northampton Town - rued Ashley not showing more conviction to take the Magpies forward. He always felt as though the potential was there for Newcastle to become the contenders they are today.

“If Mike (Ashley) had backed that with us, we had a really good team,” Nolan told the EFL. “But we sold Andy in January then I went at the end of the season. We had Joey (Barton), we brought in Cheick Tiote… I thought we were getting somewhere. With another few additions, I thought we could’ve broken into that European (bracket).

“They did do it under Alan (Pardew) after I left. They brought a lot of French and African lads who took it to a good level. Graham Carr had a lot to do with that, who’s now on the board with me at Northampton. 

“When we sold Andy it was a massive thing but it was massive money for the club and Mike wanted to sell. He wanted to go the other way and I was just thinking ‘If someone could get a hold of this club, it could rocket’. Unfortunately, I just missed it!”

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