Newcastle United are preparing for a big summer with several exits expected next month.
The summer transfer window initially opens from June 1 to June 10 ahead of the FIFA Club World Cup before re-opening on June 16 for the summer. Newcastle may look to take advantage of their considerably healthier PSR position compared to last summer with head coach Eddie Howe hinting at a ‘big’ transfer window ahead due to no major financial constraints.
But The Magpies also have several players out of contract and others linked with transfer exits.
Newcastle have recently handed out new short-term deals to Fabian Schar, Martin Dubravka and Emil Krafth, while Eddie Howe recently confirmed that Sean Longstaff is under contract until June 2026, with the club triggering an extension clause earlier this season.
While Howe has admitted Longstaff’s future at Newcastle is unclear amid links to Leeds United and Everton, he is tied down at St James’ Park for the 2025-26 season.
As things stand, there are five Newcastle first-team players set to leave the club if they don’t agree a new contract before their deals expire on June 30.
Newcastle have been relatively secretive regarding certain new contracts in recent seasons. Kieran Trippier, Eddie Howe and Jamaal Lascelles have all had extensions in recent seasons without any formal announcement from the club.
Callum Wilson is also understood to have an extension option in his current deal, but his future remains uncertain.
Callum Wilson
Wilson’s future at Newcastle is unclear with the striker starting just one Premier League match for the club during the 2024-25 campaign. The 33-year-old has had a tough time with injuries, and it has been over a year since he last scored a league goal for the club.
Newcastle have an option to extend his stay but are unlikely to trigger it. Instead, they may offer Wilson a new deal on reduced terms to reflect his less significant role in the side over the past 18 months.
The striker has been linked with a move to newly-promoted Premier League side Leeds and will assess his options in the summer as his contract nears its end.
Jamal Lewis
Jamal Lewis will officially leave Newcastle this summer as a free agent after being recalled from a loan spell at Sao Paulo. The Brazilian side had an option to make the left-back’s loan permanent opted to cut it short in January due to injury.
The 27-year-old left-back was included in Newcastle’s 25-man squad for the second half of the season but has not featured in any matchday squad and has been training away from the club.
Explaining Lewis’ inclusion in the first-team squad, Howe told The Gazette: “Jamal's currently injured and receiving treatment, but he's not receiving treatment here. I think [naming him in the squad] that was something we had to do as a formality, really.”
The Premier League have clarified that clubs are under no strict obligation to name players in their squad, though it is advised that they name any eligible player they can if they are below the 25-man limit, as Newcastle were.
Of Newcastle’s out-of-contract players, Lewis is the most certain to leave the club - having effectively already done so.
Mark Gillespie
Goalkeeper Mark Gillespie has spent the past five seasons at Newcastle without any real chance of playing for the first team in the Premier League. He is a popular figure behind the scenes and on the training ground and has often agreed new contracts shortly before his previous deals were due to expire.
As things stand, he will be a free agent in the summer - but don’t rule out another deal just yet.
John Ruddy
Ruddy is in a similar position to Gillespie but has found himself on the bench on 10 occasions since his free transfer last summer. He is still waiting to make his competitive debut for the club but, at 38, his role is one mainly reserved for the training ground.
Lloyd Kelly
Lloyd Kelly is set to be Newcastle’s first major transfer exit of the summer with his loan move to Juventus set to become permanent.
Kelly joined Newcastle as a free agent on a five-year deal worth a reported £100,000-a-week. The defender found first-team opportunities limited at Newcastle and was loaned out to Juventus in February.
Until a recent injury, Kelly had been a regular in the Juve side since his arrival. The Turin outfit have an obligation to complete a permanent transfer for Kelly in the summer which is worth up to £20million in total.
The permanent deal was subject to performance-related criteria, which are understood to have been met. Official club sources have also confirmed to The Gazette that Kelly will be joining Juventus in the summer.
Like Newcastle, Juventus will be hoping to qualify for the Champions League as they currently sit fourth in the Serie A table with two games left to play.
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