January has perhaps been the busiest month so far in terms of loans, with 2 loans ending and 8 beginning (bringing the total number of loaned out players to 12 now), a few of which being for some of the most promising youngsters at the club. For the players already out on loan it was a slow month, with only 3 goals being shared out between them.

Rolando Aarons

Position: Winger

Club: Sheffield Wednesday

Age: 23

After torrid spells at Hellas Verona and Slovan Liberec, Aarons has been loaned out to Sheffield Wednesday until the end of the season. Having made just over 50 competitive appearances since first breaking into the Newcastle first team in 2014, Aarons has struggled to establish himself anywhere at all due to injuries and poor form. Wednesday are 17th in the Championship right now, 11 points away from the relegation zone and the playoff places. With 18 games to go, Aarons has a fair amount of time to get some minutes and possibly have an impact.

Dan Barlaser

Position: Central Midfielder

Club: Accrington Stanley

Age: 22

Barlaser remains integral to Accrington’s side, starting 5 of Accrington’s 7 games over the last month, completing 90 minutes in 4 of them. Accrington only managed 1 win in 7 games, beating Ipswich 1-0 in the FA Cup third round, in a month that had many low points for the side. Bowing out of the FA Cup in the fourth round at home against Derby was a disappointing day for Accrington and Barlaser himself, as he was sent off in the 59th minute after a very reckless challenge on David Nugent that saw him pick up his second yellow card. John Coleman has publicly expressed that he feels the decision was extremely unfair and that Barlaser shouldn’t have received any of the yellows on the day. Barlaser, however, felt his first yellow was unfair but the second was just. It’s reasonable to assume that he will immediately return to the side after completing his suspension, against Sunderland no less. Accrington were also eliminated from the EFL Trophy in the 3rd round, losing 4-2 to League Two side Bury. In the league, it’s even worse for them. Having played 4 games, they have picked up 2 points and failed to score at all. Hopes of promotion are all but dead as they slipped from 10th to 15th over the last few weeks, 13 points off the playoff spots and only 5 clear of the drop.

Luke Charman

Position: Striker

Club: Accrington Stanley



Age: 21

Charman returned to Newcastle at the start of January, having made no more appearances for Accrington in a loan spell that appears to have just been a waste of time for all involved. 3 appearances (only 1 in the league, registering 22 minutes) and no goals nor assists. With Sørensen away on loan, Charman has a good chance of re-establishing himself as the U23s main man upfront and continue his development.

Jack Colback

Position: Central Midfielder

Club: Nottingham Forest

Age: 29

For the first time this season, Dwight Gayle is not the highest scoring loaned out player in a month, and he’s been knocked off his throne by a very unlikely source of goals in Jack Colback. On New Years Day, he put in a sensational performance as Nottingham Forest won 4-2 against league leaders Leeds United. Colback scored Forest’s first two goals. The first came from a horrendous backpass from Leeds’ Adam Forshaw that didn’t quite reach his goalkeeper, Colback was able to take control of the ball with acres of space and excellently took it around Bailey Peacock-Farrell, slotting it home coolly to put Forest 1-0 up inside 5 minutes. Colback’s second came just 5 minutes after his side went 2-1 down, the ball being headed down to the edge of the box by Jack Robinson from a corner, setting up a completely unmarked Colback to smash one into the bottom left corner with his right foot. After a few weeks of dismal displays, including a 2-0 loss to Chelsea in the FA Cup and defeats to Reading and Bristol City, Forest got back to winning ways at the end of the month with a 3-1 win at home against Wigan. In the 91st minute, Colback picked up his 10th booking of the season and will miss the next two games for Forest.

Forest have moved up to 9th after accumulating 6 points from a possible 12 this month and are only 4 points off the playoffs. They have also appointed ex-Sunderland manager Martin O’Neill after Aitor Karanka’s departure via mutual consent on the January 11th.

Dwight Gayle

Position: Striker





Club: West Bromwich Albion

Age: 28

Gayle’s season seems to be increasingly hampered by injuries, as he featured only twice this month for West Brom. Despite that, Gayle did still manage to score once in a 1-1 draw with Norwich on January 12th. A fantastic cross from Mason Holgate dropped just in front of Gayle who beat his marker to it, sliding in to finish at the near post and past former Newcastle favourite Tim Krul. Gayle also featured for the whole 90 in the following game against Bolton, which West Brom won 2-0, but did not score or assist. West Brom have dropped to 4th and are 4 points off automatic promotion (with a game in hand). Newcastle fans should be watching closely at their campaign, as a promotion could impact the future of both Gayle and Salomon Rondon.

Liam Gibson

Position: Left Back

Club: Accrington Stanley

Age: 21

With Charman returning to Newcastle, Accrington decided to raid the U23s once again to loan Liam Gibson. He’s already played over 7x as many minutes as Charman did, which is a promising sign for this loan spell. Starting and playing most of the matches against Charlton (1-0 defeat) and Bristol Rovers (0-0 draw), Gibson has already been thrown in a side which has been in crisis of late. It’ll be interesting to see whether he retains his place or if he is used as a rotation option.

Achraf Lazaar

Position: Left Back

Club: Sheffield Wednesday

Age: 27

Something of an outcast at NUFC right now, Lazaar was also shipped out on loan to Sheffield Wednesday alongside Rolando Aarons. A disastrous season at Benevento last year which saw Lazaar play poorly (he averaged 2.3 dispossessions + 1.3 bad touches per game), then to be unregistered, all while Benevento went down as one of the worst sides ever to compete in Italy’s top flight. Lazaar is a player who, if he can put in a few good performances, might just find himself in favour with the Newcastle fans or at least increase his market value.

Jacob Murphy

Position: Right Winger

Club: West Bromwich Albion

Age: 23

Joining Dwight Gayle at West Brom is Jacob Murphy. He has thus far been unable to show what he’s capable of at Newcastle, despite a handful of good showings, but he’s proven at Championship level and West Brom have a team that he can flourish in. West Brom have recently just lost Harvey Barnes after his loan ended. In 26 apps, Barnes scored 9 and assisted 6, putting him only behind Jay Rodriguez (17) and Dwight Gayle (16) for combined goals/assists. Murphy has been sought as the potential replacement for Barnes, so he has big shoes to fill.

Callum Roberts

Position: Winger

Club: Colchester United

Age: 21

Callum Roberts has gained a lot of attention from Newcastle fans this season, after a brilliant performance against Sunderland’s U23s back in September and then scoring his first senior goal against Blackburn Rovers in the FA Cup earlier this month. His performances also appear to have caught the eye of League Two side Colchester United, who have taken him on loan until the end of the season. It will be his 3rd spell away from his hometown club, having played at Gateshead in 2015 and Kilmarnock in 2017, with neither spell being prosperous. However, after a strong season in the reserve side and a chance in the first team, he may be ready to set League Two alight.

Henri Saivet

Position: Central Midfielder

Club: Bursaspor

Age: 28

Bursaspor returned from their winter break at the back end of January, playing two games and drawing 1-1 in both games against Fenerbahce and Kayserispor. Saivet was subbed off at half time against Fenerbahce and only played 4 minutes against Kayserispor. His loan spell is souring and he could be in for a very quiet second half to the season. Bursaspor have managed to remain in 11th place for the 3rd month in a row and have drawn their last 4 games. They sit 5 points above relegation and 8 points off Europa League qualification.

Elias Sørensen

Position: Striker

Club: Blackpool

Age: 19

Coming into January, Elias Sørensen’s future was one of the main questions at the club. Many were calling for him to be loaned out to get some real experience, some wanted him to remain at the club be monitored closely, and others wanted him to be given the nod over Joselu in a desperate please to remove the Spaniard from selection. Lo and behold, Sørensen joined League One side Blackpool on loan until the end of the season, a move which saw Sean Longstaff flourish last season. He made his debut on the 29th, coming on as a sub against Wycombe Wanderers. It’s very possible that Sørensen will feature heavily for Blackpool as they have only scored 31 goals in 29 games this season, the lowest in the top 10 in League One this season by quite some margin (10 goals fewer than anyone else). Blackpool sit in 8th in the league, 6 points off the playoffs. Sørensen has a massive chance to make a name for himself and we are all watching with excitement.

Jamie Sterry

Position: Right Back

Club: Crewe Alexandra

Age: 23

After being eliminated from all cup competitions, Rafa Benitez appears to have lost any use for Jamie Sterry, who has rejoined Crewe in League Two until the end of the season. A worrying backwards step in his career after getting in and around the first team a little bit this season, time is running out for Sterry to forge himself a career at a high level. Hopefully, a familiar setting will help him do that. Crewe are 11th in League Two, well clear of relegation and 6 points away from the playoff places.

Josef Yarney

Position: Centre Back

Club: Morecambe/Chesterfield

Age: 21

Yarney finished his loan spell at Morecambe by being an unused substitute against Carlisle and Crewe Alexandra. He made 21 appearances for the struggling side. He has completed a deadline day loan move to Chesterfield, who are currently 1 point off safety in the National League. A step back for Yarney, similarly to Sterry, after a not too terrible showing at Morecambe.