Newcastle United have yet to begin contract talks with in-form centre back Federico Fernandez, according to The Chronicle.
The newspaper claims that the Argentine international has yet to be rewarded with discussions over a new deal, despite his current contract expiring at the end of the season.
Magpies head coach Steve Bruce is thought to be a fan of the 30-year-old, who impressed the Toon boss with his attitude and application when he was out of the team earlier in the season.
Fernandez’s people are waiting until January to see if there has been any movement from Newcastle before deciding his next move. However, the player and his family are settled on Tyneside.
OPINION
This seems slightly strange given how well Fernandez has been playing recently, although it does seem like Newcastle are trying to tie down quite a few different players to extensions at the same time. However, due to the proximity of Fernandez’s current deal expiring in the summer of 2020, you would have thought that they’d be prioritising sorting out his future. Having said that, we know that Mike Ashley doesn’t particularly like handing long extensions to players over the age of 30, and so you wonder whether the Magpies will let the former Swansea City man walk out the St James’ Park exit door next summer. Given how he’s been playing this season, though, that would be a mistake. As per WhoScored.com, the veteran Argentine has scored once and grabbed an assist this campaign, while he is averaging 1.8 tackles and 5.8 clearances per game. He has made the difference at both ends of the pitch and so it would be strange if the club let him go.
