Wearside bound?It looks like suitors, Newcastle and Everton, may have been pipped to the signing of Matt Kilgallon. Some horrible rumours abound that Toon target, Kilgallon, is about to sign for Sunderland and printed speculation can be found in The Journal. Luke Edwards is reporting that a £2m offer has been accepted by the Blades, and suggests the deal will go through, and the mackems will make an announcement on his signing today.
Having been on our radar since the summer, the defender decided to stay put when all the signs were that he was keen to come to Tyneside. The reasoning was that he was keen to stay with Sheffield United and gain promotion and look at his options in the summer. The more cynical view was that he was running down his contract, to get a better signing on fee, and that we was waiting to sign for Everton.
It looks like both of those opinions are redundant now, because Edwards seems fairly confident that the deal is going to go ahead, although other sources suggest a fee of £1.75m. It remains to be seen whether Bruce pulls off the deal or not and there are no quotes from either clubs, the player or the player’s agent. But if the announcement does come today, then we haven’t got much time to wait. (more…)
Unknown agenda?News today from a number of sources seems to indicate that the Toon’s move for Sheffield United’s coveted defender, Matt Kilgallon, has collapsed. Newcastle had reportedly made a bid of around £1 million for the player, who is out of contract in the summer, and could be snapped up on a free transfer in 6 months.
The player is seemingly committed to helping Sheffield United obtain promotion to the Premier League. In a statement from the player’s agent, Paul Masterton said:
“We have spoken to Kevin Blackwell to say Matthew is fully committed to Sheffield United until the end of the season. We have also informed Newcastle United about the situation.”
“Matthew is keen to win promotion with Sheffield United. If that happens, we will re-assess the options in the summer.”
This seems kind of fishy to me and has the stench of an agent trying to get the best deal for himself. After all, such a committed player has refused to sign a new contract and could leave his current club in the summer, earning them no money whatsoever. I like to think the best of people, so perhaps the lad is comitted to The Blades after all? (more…)
I hear £1m...do I hear £3m?A number of sources, including The Journal are confirming that Newcastle have made formal bids for Jermaine Beckford and Matthew Kilgallon, after submitting written offers to Leeds United and Sheffield United respectively, for two of the players high on their priority list for the January transfer window.
Despite the concerns that history would repeat itself and see the club dwell on their ‘attempts’ to bolster the squad, the club has moved swiftly to kick off inevitable negotiations. While The Journal quotes senior sources as “quietly confident”, an agreement on both is sure to take some time, particularly Beckford’s as Leeds hold out for a bidding war, with the striker’s rise in stock following his FA Cup winner against the mancs.
It appears the conclusion of the Kilgallon move may be more straightforward, as though manager Kevin Blackwell has repeatedly stated he wants him to stay, there have been enough comments ‘between the lines’ which suggest he has acknowledged it is more a case of when and not if. With his contract due to expire, it’s likely that Sheffield will just get the best price and look for a replacement. (more…)
Mr Reliable?Derek Llambias has made a timely statement to suggest that Chris Hughton will be backed in his bid to bolster Newcastle United’s bid for promotion at the first attempt. Llambias has also spoken about his belief that the fans are coming around to some sort of acceptance of Ashley, due to the stirling work of Hughton so far this season and insisted that Mike Ashley is committed to giving Hughton everything required to get the club promoted.
Having been impressed with the start we’ve made to this campaign, it would appear that they do not want to jeopardise the good work and insists that there are no plans to let any players leave in January.
He also apparently revealed (though he’s not quoted), that they are close to finalising permanent moves for at least two players ahead of the January transfer window, with Sheffield United centre-back Matthew Kilgallon on the verge of sealing a switch to the North East.
“We have been absolutely delighted with the job that Chris has done,”
“There is a fantastic spirit in the camp and he has managed to change the whole atmosphere surrounding the club. It seems like a different place to what it was a few months ago.
“To see a crowd of nearly 50,000 people inside St James’ Park last weekend was tremendous and shows what a fantastic football club this is.(more…)
Free to do what he wants, any old time?Rumours coming from a number of sources including The Telegraph and The Sun in the last 48 hours, claim that Sol Campbell may be on the verge of joining Newcastle, now that his contract has officially been cancelled with Notts County. Now this isn’t exactly new, or ground-breaking news as it’s something the majority of us have been hearing about for quite some months.
But The Telegraph quotes Hughton:
“Well Sol would be one of a number of players that, of course, we will be assessing over the next month because come the end of January we have to make sure that we have the right squad and the right players. Of course it is not only us that know about Sol’s situation and it won’t only be us who are interested.
The most important thing for us is that in that last hour of the window that we have a squad in place that will take us through the last period of this season which will be a very demanding period.
“It will also be a period where the other teams will be strengthening and deciding what they need as they address that last period of the season themselves. We have to make sure that we are right come that last day.”
This could tie-in to reports that we’re set for a battle with Hull City to sign Matthew Kilgallon from Sheffield Utd in January. (more…)
