For some reason, there was a portion of Newcastle fans that adored Chancel Mbemba.
The defender looked half decent at times, and was probably our best defender in the season we got relegated. However, that’s not saying much.
Since Rafa Benitez took over, Mbemba became more and more out of favour. He was eventually sold this summer to Porto. As he joined a Champions League club, some suggested we had made a mistake.
Mbemba on the move again?
But months after leaving St James’ Park, the 24-year-old has been linked with another move. According to the Scottish Sun, Porto are interested in signing Celtic midfielder Olivier Ntcham for £14million. And as part of their offer, they will also offer Mbemba to help sweeten the deal.
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The fact that Porto are already willing to let him go says a lot. The summer signing has barely featured in Portugal, making just two appearances for Porto so far.
He would certainly be a good signing for Celtic, who are in desperate need of defensive recruits. But for Newcastle, it just proves that Benitez was right to let him go.
The Magpies have a wealth of options at centre-back, and the players who arrived this summer are certainly more impressive than Mbemba. While he was good on the ball, for a defender he was far too weak.
If he does move to Celtic, it probably won’t be long before we see him back in the Premier League anyway. If you play well for Celtic, you join Southampton. And if you play well for Southampton, you join Liverpool!