Jonjo Shelvey Likely to Leave Newcastle at End of the Season After Failing to Regain Starting Role

​Newcastle midfielder Jonjo Shelvey looks likely to leave the club at the end of the season, despite reassurances from manager Rafa Benitez that he will get minutes on the field.

The 27-year-old has failed to break back into the side after recovering from injury, with Sean Longstaff and Isaac Hayden cementing themselves as first choice options in the heart of the Magpies midfield.

Shelvey has been told that he will again not be in the squad for Newcastle's trip to West Ham at the weekend, having suffered the same fate against both Burnley and Huddersfield last week.

Jonjo Shelvey

The Telegraph claim that the former Charlton and Liverpool midfielder will depart St James' Park at the end of the current campaign as a result, even though Benitez is adamant that he has a long-term future at the club.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Benitez said: "He is coming back from injury and he needs match fitness. He said if he was not involved against West Ham, he wanted to improve his fitness. He asked to be put into the Under-23 team. It was a positive movement, he wanted to play.

"I have five midfielders competing for two spots and Sean Longstaff and Isaac Hayden have been doing very well. Mo Diame and Ki also cannot get in the team and they were ahead of Jonjo."

"But he still has a long-term future. He is under contract. He has not caused any trouble. He was the one telling me he wanted to play for the Under-23s. I said do you want 45 minutes and he said, no 60."

Shelvey's willingness to drop down a level to get football under his belt is a clear demonstration of his desire to break back into the side, but with a number of players ahead of him in the Newcastle midfield pecking order, he could now move on - with ​West Ham among the sides rumoured to hold a long standing interest in securing his signature.


Source : 90min