Lloyd Kelly injury setback as Newcastle United receive big update on £20m sale
Juventus have released a statement confirming Newcastle United loanee Lloyd Kelly will miss next week’s huge game against Bologna with a hamstring injury.
This setback came just hours after the Turin giants edged closer to making his switch permanent for £20million. Kelly lasted just 10 Premier League games at St James’ Park before being moved on in January.
Signed last summer from Bournemouth on a free transfer, the 26-year-old arrived aiming to provide versatility to Eddie Howe’s backline. The Toon boss signed Kelly at the Cherries and reunited with him on Tyneside five years later.
However, the defender soon found himself down the pecking order at left-back and centre-back. PSR regulations have been tight at Newcastle in recent windows and an opportunity came to move the former Bournemouth man on.
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Juve came calling in January with a loan deal that looks likely to become permanent for £20million at the end of the season. NewcastleWorld understands the move relies upon Juventus qualifying for UEFA competition next season.
That stipulation looked under threat last Wednesday when the Old Lady crashed to a 1-0 defeat to Parma. But bouncing back with a victory over Monza at the weekend has reasserted Juve’s position in the European race.
As it stands, the Serie A club are fourth - in the Champions League places - but AC Milan remain just five points behind and sit ninth. Four games of the campaign are left for Juventus to cling onto a European position.
Italian clubs - and Newcastle’s chances of a sale - could be boosted further if they earn an extra Champions League place via UEFA’s revamped coefficient system. England banked one additional spot earlier this month and Italy are marginally ahead of Spain for the other.
Offloading Kelly will provide a tidy profit to the Toon coffers but a 10-game run in the team is set to end. Juve released a statement confirming he has picked up a hamstring injury and will miss the huge game with Bologna this weekend.
“Lloyd Kelly, having reported a muscle problem in his right thigh at the end of last night's game against Monza, underwent diagnostic tests this morning which revealed a low-grade hamstring injury,” the announcement read. “New examinations will be repeated in about 10 days' time in order to define the exact recovery time.”
Eddie Howe never wanted to lose Lloyd Kelly at Newcastle United
Howe admitted in February that the decision to lose Kelly was taken out of his hands. He told reporters: “I don't think it was necessarily my decision to let him leave, I think it was very reluctant from our side because Lloyd's a player that had just recently signed and we believed in him and his qualities.
“(It has been) slightly frustrating for him that he hadn't played more but in part really due to the form of the other players around him. But I think we're in the world, and we have been this window of trying to manage PSR and trying to make decisions that benefit us in the long-term, and this is one of those decisions.
“So Lloyd leaves with our best wishes. He certainly has had an exemplary attitude during his time here and I'm sure he'll do well in Italy and it's an exciting new challenge for him.”
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