Newcastle United is in a period of change throughout the club with players and staff from previous management being moved on.
In the summer Newcastle released several players from both first team and academy including longstanding Toon duo Paul Dummett and Matt Ritchie.
The pair have since found new clubs with Ritchie moving closer to home in Portsmouth and Dummett recently signing for League One side Wigan where he has made two appearances.
Kelland Watts, another player released by the Magpies in summer made an early move to League One strugglers Cambridge United.
Now, another former Newcastle man snubbed by the club at the end of last season has officially signed his first contract since departure.
Rodrigo Vilca of Newcastle United (7) controls the ball as Niall Huggins of Leeds United (3) challenges during the Premier League 2 match between ...
Photo by Serena Taylor/Newcastle United via Getty Images
Former Newcastle United man Rodrigo Vilca signs for Atletico Grau
Vilca has signed his first deal since he left Newcastle in the summer. The 25-year-old is set to return to Peru, his home country for the 2025 season after a forgettable spell on Tyneside.
The club announced the signing via social media on Saturday with a message “Welcome to Piura, Rodrigo! After his step through Europe, the talented 25-year-old national midfielder, Rodrigo Vilca, joins the Heritage of Piura this 2025. Let’s go Grau!”
¡Bienvenido a Piura, Rodrigo!⚽️🔝
💯Luego de su paso por Europa, el talentoso mediocampista nacional de 25 años, Rodrigo Vilca, se incorpora al Patrimonio de Piura este 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣5️⃣
¡Vamos Grau! ❤️💛#PatrimonioDePiura pic.twitter.com/Ld9btCN1t8
— Club Atlético Grau – Oficial (@Grau_Oficial) December 5, 2024
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Signing for the Magpies in 2020 under manager Steve Bruce, Vilca was tipped for success at Newcastle but he never got up and running staying in the youth team for the majority of his time at the club.
Vilca was loaned to Doncaster Rovers in 2021 but failed to make an impression and was sent back to Newcastle in January.
Loan spells at Peruvian top-flight club Universitario and Serbian SuperLiga side FK Voždovac followed before his contract at Newcastle came to an end.
At 25, Vilca will be hoping this is the move that will kickstart his career after failing to make a single first-team appearance in his four years at Newcastle.
Loris Karius and Jeff Hendrick are without a club after Newcastle United release
Two other players among the five senior players released by Newcastle were goalkeeper Loris Karius and midfielder Jeff Hendrick.
It was no surprise that the duo didn’t have their contract renewed in summer with Hendrick going out on loan for the majority of Eddie Howe’s tenure and Karius admitting his Newcastle release ‘made sense’.
Despite their summer exits, they remain the only two out of the five players yet to find a new club despite their vast range of experience.
Karius was linked with a move to Barcelona in the summer which failed to materialise – despite that, the 31-year-old is still without a club. The German only made two appearances in his two-year stint with one of them being Newcastle’s Carabao Cup final defeat to Manchester United.
Hendrick, who joined in 2020 has gone radio silent since his release and like Karius is still without a club. While at Newcastle, the Irishman had loan stints at QPR, Reading, and Sheffield Wednesday but at 32 the clock is ticking for Hendrick to pick up the pieces after his Newcastle release.
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