La Liga side Cadiz CF are reportedly interested in signing Newcastle United defender Javier Manquillo, who is set to leave the northeast club in 2023 after falling out of Eddie Howe’s plans.
According to Estadio Deportivo, the Spanish side are keeping tabs on the 28-year-old fullback with Manquillo yet to play a single minute of football for Newcastle this season, with the former Atletico Madrid right-back likely to leave St. James Park in January.
Kieran Trippier has asserted himself as Newcastle’s first-choice right-back after signing for the club last year from Atletico, and as a result, Manquillo has been left out in the cold by Howe, with the defender yet to kick a ball in a professional game this season.
Signed by Rafa Benitez back in 2017, the £35,000-a-week fullback is at a stage in his career where he should be playing regular football, and Cadiz’s interest in signing Manquillo is exactly what the defender will want ahead of the January transfer window.
Indeed, the former Liverpool defender was once viewed as one of Spain’s most exciting fullback talents. However, Manquillo’s career hasn’t taken off as many expected it would, and a return to La Liga to sign for an ambitious club like Cadiz sounds perfect for all parties.
As well as Manquillo signing for a club where he will likely be a regular, Newcastle once again gets to rid themselves of a piece of deadwood that many supporters have wanted to go for some years. And with the PIF regime making money no issue for the Toon, a contract termination could even be made in January to push through a transfer.
Cadiz signing Manquillo would be a major win-win
With zero minutes all season, Manquillo leaving in January for good feels like a right move for everyone involved, with Newcastle able to sell off a player who doesn’t fit with their future plans and the defender himself returning home to play for one of Spain’s up-and-coming clubs.
Although a transfer fee might be hard for Cadiz to conjure up, Newcastle and Manquillo could easily come to a mutual termination in the coming weeks to allow the fullback to return home to Spain. And the freed up wages will allow the Toon to sign another player in January.
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