If there’s one thing you should always look to avoid as a football fan, it’s falling in love with a loan player.
And even with Newcastle’s spotty recent history with loanees like Kenedy, Danny Rose and Nabil Bentaleb, there have been some absolute gems to grace the St James’ Park pitch for a short spell.
Jetro Willems was one of them: the Dutch wingback had all the makings of a modern Toon hero, popping up with goals and assists as one of the most exciting players to watch during Steve Bruce’s tenure.
However, an ACL injury put an abrupt halt to his time on Tyneside, and now the 31-year-old has opened up on his loan spell with us, wishing he had a chance to spend more time at a club and city he seemed to fall in love with.
In a new interview, the skilful full-back and current free agent has detailed how his time in black and white helped reinvigorate his passion for the game.
“It was a special time. I liked the city, the fans, the club, everything. It meant a lot. I got the joy back,” he said.
“I won trophies at Frankfurt and had a good time, but I had a feeling in Newcastle that really suited me. That’s what I needed and wanted all the time.”
“It brought me some joy, a feeling of home, so that was a very important thing.”
Willems quickly struck up an exciting partnership with Allan Saint-Maximin down our left side, giving us a few box office moments as the pair often linked up on and off the pitch.
Just as fans expected us to push through a permanent deal for the former PSV star, a serious knee injury in late January 2020 derailed his season – and hopes of an extended stay.
Instead, we passed up on the chance to sign Jeto, bringing in Norwich’s Jamal Lewis instead the following summer in what would prove to be £15m wasted.
But Willems still looks back on his time at Newcastle with pride and happiness, adding “I’m one of them.”
“It’s sad that it ended like that but, for me, it doesn’t matter. Things happen in life and football. You need to deal with it and, in the end, I can say they wanted me for years and I did my job.
“It’s not that they wanted me for years and it didn’t work out. That’s a great feeling too you know? I had a great time there. Not everyone can say that. I’m one of them.”