Jamaal Lascelles of Newcastle United reacts at full time during the Barclays Premier League match between Newcastle United and Crystal Palace at St James Park on April 30, 2016 in Newcastle, England. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty images)placeholder image
Jamaal Lascelles of Newcastle United reacts at full time during the Barclays Premier League match between Newcastle United and Crystal Palace at St James Park on April 30, 2016 in Newcastle, England. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty images) | Getty Images
Jamaal Lascelles has joined Championship side Leicester City, bringing an end to his decade-long spell at Newcastle United.
The journey from the Championship to the Champions League to lifting the Carabao Cup is a courageous story that began back in April 2016, when a 22-year-old Lascelles called out his mercenary teammates.
Heading towards Premier League relegation following a 3-1 defeat at Southampton, Lascelles — the least experienced member of the dressing room with only 15 appearances to his name — stood up for the football club when no one else would.
Jamaal Lascelles: A true Newcastle United captain and leader
It was one of many miserable days during a dire campaign that ended in relegation, but it was one when a captain and true leader was born. 253 appearances later, the club Lascelles joined from Nottingham Forest could not be more different to the one he leaves behind.
And without players like Lascelles, Newcastle United does not exist in its current form. Supporters I’ve seen exhibiting recency bias should remember that.
Lascelles captained the club out of the Championship at the first attempt and fought tooth and nail through countless relegation battles. It is those tough times that Lascelles earned the right to play in the Champions League and lift the Carabao Cup.
From the Pirelli Stadium in Burton to the Parc des Princes in Paris, Lascelles never let Newcastle down.
He has also earned the right to some understanding. To those trying to discredit Lascelles by saying he has only played twice since March 2024, true yes, but put some respect on his name. ACL injuries are no joke.
In an era where players like Michael Owen have bled the club dry, Lascelles has never been one to happily sit on the sidelines and collect his salary, as I’ve saw some imply.
The reality is, the squad moved on and Lascelles sadly fell down the pecking order during his injury recovery. Has he ever sulked? No. He has remained the captain, just without the armband.
Jamaal Lascelles deserves a Newcastle United testimonial
If that isn’t the measure of the man and the true leader that he is, then March 16, 2025, is.
Even during the euphoria of winning the club’s first domestic trophy in 70 years, Lascelles was at the forefront of Bruno Guimaraes and Kieran Trippier’s minds as they delayed the trophy lift until he had one hand on it with them.
"Jam was our captain when this club was in a very different place,” Trippier said. “People may think it was a gesture from myself and Bruno to get Jam up to lift the trophy with us, but I see it differently. For me, it was an honour that Jam let me lift the trophy with him.”
Trippier couldn’t have put it any better. Lascelles might not have played in the final but everything he has done for the club helped lead to that point.
Testimonials don’t seem to happen in football anymore but Lascelles deserves to buck that trend.
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