Newcastle star Lloyd Kelly to join Juventus on loan with £20m buy option - with Magpies unlikely to add to their squad before transfer window closes
Newcastle star Lloyd Kelly to join Juventus on loan with £20m buy option - with Magpies unlikely to add to their squad before transfer window closes
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Newcastle will allow Lloyd Kelly to join Juventus in a £20million deal - but they are very unlikely to make any new signings before Monday’s deadline. The 27-year-old only joined the club on a free transfer from Bournemouth in June, but United’s hierarchy see the offer from the Italian giants as too good to turn down. He will move on loan until the end of the season with an obligation to make the deal permanent in the summer.
![[The Magpies' hierarchy see the offer from Juventus as too good to turn down]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/02/02/16/94776627-0-image-a-55_1738514986247.jpg)
Sporting director Paul Mitchell and others inside Newcastle believe that the removal Kelly’s wages, plus the fee received, will improve the club’s PSR situation greatly ahead of what is expected to be a busy close-season. Had the defender been part of Eddie Howe’s first team, their rationale would have been different. However, he has made just four Premier League starts this season and is currently behind Lewis Hall at left-back and the likes of Sven Botman and Dan Burn at left-sided centre-back. The player’s salary was said to be generous given he arrived on a free, and that has also been factored into Newcastle’s thinking.
But a replacement for Kelly - or Miguel Almiron, who joined Atlanta United for £10m last week - is not expected to arrive this month, and that could yet frustrate Howe and supporters. Newcastle defender Lloyd Kelly will join Juventus on loan with £20m buy option. The Magpies' hierarchy see the offer from Juventus as too good to turn down. Instead, the club want to maintain what they believe will be a strong position heading into the next PSR cycle. They also believe the sales of Almiron and Kelly give them a greater chance of keeping stars such as Alexander Isak, Bruno Guimaraes and Anthony Gordon beyond this season.
The flip side of that argument is that, by strengthening now, Howe and his team would be better placed to qualify for the Champions League. Those hopes were took a hit during Saturday’s 2-1 home loss by Fulham, a match in which Howe’s options from the bench were limited and the depth of the squad was exposed. Kieran Trippier came on in the second half and he is the subject of interest from Galatasaray. However, it would take a sizeable offer for Newcastle to even consider allowing the defender to leave during this window.
