The Athletic are reporting that Jack Colback and Rob Elliot’s time at the club will come to an end this summer – with both being told they won’t be offered a new contract at the club.
The pair have racked up a combined 15 years on Tyneside, with Elliot now our longest-serving squad member following a move from Charlton in 2011, but neither has earned the right to be handed a new deal when their current contracts expire at the end of the month.
Colback has been collecting a ridiculously inflated wage in the region of £50k a week since arriving from Sunderland in 2014, and The Athletic claim Nottingham Forest are already eyeing a move to sign him on a free.
The 30-year-old enjoyed an impressive loan spell at the City Ground across 2018-19 and is believed to still live in Nottingham with his partner, with Jonjo Shelvey revealing that he’s recently been travelling up from the Midlands to Tyneside to train each day.
As for Elliot, he’s been at the club for 10 seasons now and has made just 68 appearances in that period, with the Ireland international failing to feature once over the past two seasons after slipping behind Dubravka, Darlow and Woodman in the pecking order.
A good bloke by all accounts, but it’s his time to leave if he wants game time as a 34-year-old with a few more years still left in him.
On the subject of players nearing the end of their contracts, George Caulkin also claims that Manquillo and Carroll are in talks with Lee Charnley over some sort of extension, with the Spaniard being a fine example of earning yourself a new deal through hard work and positive performances.
Manquillo has been one of our most improved players so far this campaign and has put in some dependable displays under Bruce, elevating himself in the pecking order ahead of the likes of Yedlin and summer signing Krafth.
Andy Carroll is someone who splits opinion among our fanbase, but I feel the decision to keep him for another year could be the right one considering the lack of options we currently have at our disposal up front. When fit, he has contributed to the team’s cause despite not finding the net since his return.
Matty Longstaff is another whose future could lie elsewhere if he doesn’t sign this month, however it seems it’s up to him now whether he prefers £20,000 per-week at his boyhood club or £30,000 at a struggling club in Serie A…
