Malcolm Macdonald shared his worries over the club reportedly considering selling Matt Ritchie in order to boost the Rafa Benitez’s transfer budget.
The Magpies legend, who scored 95 goals in 187 appearances for the club, stated that he was concerned that the 28-year-old would be sold as signing an adequate replacement for him would prove to be costly.
It is believed that the Ritchie is a £15million target for Championship duo Middlesbrough and Stoke City this summer, as reported by The Telegraph, with the two clubs having detailed talks with the Magpies over signing him.
“Rafa Benitez is desperately trying to boost his transfer kitty by shipping a few bodies out, however I have grave concern over the possibility of Matt Ritchie being one of them,” said Supermac in his column for the Chronicle.
“Ritchie is well-rated, especially by Championship clubs striving for promotion and it’s hardly surprising given what the player did in helping Bournemouth and Newcastle make the Premier League.
“However the finances don’t add up, never mind losing a decent performer, it’s reckoned that Ritchie would fetch £15m but what would it cost to replace him as a regular starter on United’s wing?
“Rafa likes a couple of players who he has had here at Newcastle before but Kenedy would cost £20m and Crystal Palace are supposed to want a staggering £30m for Andros Townsend.
“Heaven forbid that Ritchie’s replacement in the first team became Christian Atsu. He is nowhere near a consistent enough contributor to the cause.”
OPINION
Macdonald, who is better known as Supermac, is right to be worried over the club potentially binning Ritchie in this window. The midfielder is an important member of the Magpies’ first-team shown by how impressive he was during the 38 outings he made for Benitez’s side in the 2017/18 season. While players such as Kenedy and Townsend to a degree are more exciting attacking prospect to have at the club, Ritchie’s crossing ability and work ethic make him a player that the club simply can’t risk losing. Supermac is right to point out that the potential players capable of being signed to replace Ritchie would cost a lot of money and it’s hard to have faith that the Magpies would splash the cash in order to get them. The club have shown countless times in the recent transfer windows that they’re not willing to spend huge amounts on recruiting new faces and this could see Ritchie go only to be left with Atsu as their potential first-choice option to play on their flanks. While Atsu has his moments, Macdonald is right to point out that his inconsistency means that he can’t be relied upon.
