Shola transfer hitch hits Keegan's budget

Aug 20 2008 by Stuart Rayner, The Journal

NEWCASTLE United’s summer recruitment plans suffered a blow yesterday when striker Shola Ameobi failed a medical at Ipswich Town.

The Tractor Boys had agreed to pay £2.5m for the 26-year-old striker but the move has been put on hold after Ameobi’s two-day examination highlighted a hamstring problem.

The news is bad for Newcastle, who had hoped to use his departure to subsidise the three signings they plan to make before the month is out – and extremely embarrassing for Ipswich, who hours earlier announced a deal was imminent.

Ipswich have not abandoned all hope of signing the former England Under-21s international but do not expect him to recover before the transfer window – which has been moved back to midnight on September 1 – closes.

The club’s official website said they would be “exploring other options with Newcastle”. Football League clubs are able to sign players on loan outside of the transfer window and the Suffolk club are likely to propose a loan until Christmas, probably with a commitment to sign Ameobi permanently in January.

If that is the case, the Magpies will probably want a cast-iron guarantee that the deal will go ahead. Ameobi was loaned to Stoke City late last season and United thought the Potters would make the move permanent at the end of the campaign. But the Potters backed out when it became clear Ameobi had not settled as they hoped. It proved costly as Stoke had promised to pay around £4m – considerably more than any of his other suitors.

Ameobi injured his hamstring in pre-season against Hertha Berlin in the Mallorca Summer Cup and has not featured since. The Championship side erred on the side of caution having re-signed Shefki Kuqi on loan in March, only for the striker to injure his hamstring on his second debut.

Quite what effect the stalled deal will have on Newcastle’s spending remains to be seen. Nobody has officially said Kevin Keegan must sell before he can buy but the fact Ameobi and Alan Smith are likely to be sold from a squad already light on numbers – when Keegan has been extremely vocal on the need to keep the latter – suggests there is pressure to bring in some money to at least partly offset arrivals.

Anything that comes in for Ameobi is now unlikely to do so until mid-September at the earliest.

Rumours persist of a loan for Real Madrid playmaker Javier Saviola. Like Jonás Gutiérrez and Fabricio Coloccini, Saviola is an Argentina international.

The 26-year-old moved to the Bernabeu on a free transfer from Barcelona 12 months ago but has made just nine appearances for Madrid. AZ Alkmaar’s £6m-rated Belgian left-back Sebastian Pocognoli has also been linked.

Meanwhile, winger Gutiérrez hopes Newcastle laid down a marker at Old Trafford last week – but warned their good work will be wasted if they do not follow it with three points at home to Bolton Wanderers on Saturday.

Gutierrez made an impressive debut in the 1-1 draw with Manchester United but felt the team’s display was more significant.

“It will give us confidence, especially if we win the next match,” he said.

“We need to play well at home next week, but this point is a great start and hopefully we have shown people how we can play.

“It was so important to get a point at Old Trafford because it is such a difficult place to play. They won the last title so for us it is a very good point.

“It was very quick. The pace was so quick and it was throughout the whole match.”

United centre-back Steven Taylor has declared himself fit for Saturday’s game – despite pulling out of the England Under-21s side which beat Slovenia 2-1 last night. “I had a scan on my ankle and there’s nothing broken or anything like that,” he said. “I should be back in training in the next couple of days and I’ll be ready for Bolton.”