The former Swansea City and Liverpool man is becoming a key figure for Rafael Benitez’s promotion-chasing Magpies.
Newcastle United midfielder Jonjo Shelvey is a player that has certainly attracted plenty of attention throughout his relatively short professional career.
The six-capped England international has already made four permanent moves since breaking onto the scene in 2008, and questions over his attitude and application have persistently followed him wherever he has gone.
After his tempestuous spell in Wales with Swansea City ended in acrimonious circumstances back in January, Shelvey finally looks to have found his home under Rafael Benitez at Newcastle, emerging as a pivotal figure for the Magpies as they look to bounce back to the Premier League at the first time of asking following last season’s agonising relegation.
With that said, Shelvey remains a fascinatingly divisive figure amongst football fans, so here are five little-known facts to help you get to know the enigmatic Toon star a little bit better:
He was on Arsenal and West Ham’s books as a youngster
Shelvey’s technical ability is outstanding, and this was clearly picked up on by scouts from a very young age; with the Romford-born youngster featuring for both Arsenal and West Ham’s youth teams before making the move to Charlton Athletic in 2004.
He suffers from alopecia totalis
Shelvey’s distinctive bald hairstyle is not through choice – the 24-year-old suffers with the rare condition alopecia totalis which results in sufferers losing their hair, particularly on the scalp.
Speaking to The Guardian about his condition back in 2013, Shelvey discussed how the disease affected his mental state as a youngster:
“When I was with Arsenal [as a nine-year-old] I used to go into training with a baseball cap on, because I was so scared of what people were thinking when I was growing up. I remember walking through Romford with my sister and I had my bald head and people would stare. My sister would get upset about it and ask people what they were looking at. Now, I’ve got to the stage that I don’t even bother shaving it some days. This is just the way I am, I suppose.”
He became Charlton Athletic’s youngest ever debutant and goalscorer
After making his breakthrough for Charlton’s Under-18 side during the 2007-08 season, Shelvey became The Addicks’ youngest ever debutant in 2008 when he started against Barnsley at the age of just 16 years and 59 days.
He later went on to become Charlton’s youngest ever goalscorer when he netted against Norwich City in an FA Cup tie back in January 2009.
He would regularly ‘overstep the mark’ in Liverpool training
Shelvey got the first big move of his career when Liverpool snapped up the then-teen sensation from Charlton for a reported (BBC) £1.7 million fee in 2010. The highly-rated Englishman went on to make 69 appearances over his three seasons with The Reds before surprisingly making a permanent move to Swansea City in 2013.
A section of Liverpool fans were perturbed that the club were allowing one of their most gifted youngsters to depart on a permanent deal when there was so much room for development in his game. However, legendary defender Jamie Carragher cast light on Shelvey’s departure in his Daily Mail column; hinting that the midfielder had underlying attitude issues which manifested themselves in training:
“Jonjo was someone who could overstep the mark from time to time in training at Liverpool but he can certainly play, and the one thing I like about him is the fact he has confidence to try things.”
His wife is a former popstar
The Mirror report that Shelvey married former S Club Juniors star Daisy Evans at a lavish wedding ceremony in June of last year.
The midfield maverick is believed to have spared no expense for the big occasion, with Shelvey reportedly hiring stand-up comedian Jimmy Carr to perform at the couple’s plush wedding breakfast!
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