LLOYD KELLY has passed his medical at Juventus – with the defender’s departure from Newcastle United expected to be confirmed in the next few hours.
Kelly travelled to Turin yesterday to tie up the formalities of his move to Juventus, with the Newcastle hierarchy having sanctioned his departure over the weekend.
The 26-year-old is signing an initial loan deal, with Juventus having an obligation to complete a permanent transfer next summer provided certain conditions are met. Newcastle’s ownership group are confident those conditions will be fulfilled, which will mean Kelly played his final minutes as a Magpies players when he came off the bench in the closing stages of Saturday’s home defeat to Fulham.
The financial package involved in the deal could potentially be worth around £20m to Newcastle, representing a huge profit given the club signed Kelly as a free agent following his departure from Bournemouth last summer.
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It is likely to be a quiet deadline day on Tyneside, with Kelly’s exit meaning Newcastle will not be allowing either Kieran Trippier or Matt Targett to leave.
Galatasaray made an approach for Trippier at the end of last week, while Watford lodged as formal loan offer for Targett over the weekend.
However, with Kelly’s departure reducing Newcastle’s defensive options, Eddie Howe does not want to lose either Trippier and Targett ahead of tonight’s deadline.
Kelly will follow Miguel Almiron through the exit door, but Newcastle still do not intend to bring anyone in on deadline day.
With their PSR position still extremely tight, Newcastle’s recruitment team, led by sporting director Paul Mitchell, have concluded that it is better to keep their powder dry for the summer window, when they should have more scope to spend.
