Major concern as it’s revealed who Eddie Howe sees as Lloyd Kelly’s two replacements at Newcastle United

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Newcastle United are closing in on another sale with Lloyd Kelly agreeing terms with Juventus.

In order to ease PSR concerns, Newcastle United entered the January transfer window wanting to raise cash through sales.

Miguel Almiron has completed an £11m move to MLS side Atlanta United, and now Lloyd Kelly could be following him out the exit door.

Newcastle have verbally agreed to sell Kelly to Juventus for a £15m fee. Just seven months after joining as a free agent, the 26-year-old looks set to leave.

Kelly’s £15m fee ranks in Newcastle’s top 10 sales – a remarkable achievement by sporting director Paul Mitchell after picking up the Bournemouth defender for free.

However, selling Kelly does leave Newcastle short of options in defence. Eddie Howe does have a solution, but it might not be what fans want to hear.

How Eddie Howe plans to replace Lloyd Kelly

After missing out on Marc Guehi in the summer, Newcastle have been linked with several top centre-back targets.

However, with Sven Botman returning from injury and Jamaal Lascelles also on his way back, the need to strengthen in defence eased up.

Kelly’s expected departure, though, surely means a new centre-back will be needed to replace him. According to the Northern Echo that is not the case.

• Newcastle United’s stance on replacing Lloyd Kelly as defender nears Juventus move

The report claims that Howe is content letting Kelly leave as he believes h has enough strength at centre-back in the current squad. There will be no signings made to replace Kelly until the summer.

In particular, Howe believes Emil Krafth and Lascelles provide enough cover for Kelly if he leaves in the next 48 hours.

Not replacing Lloyd Kelly is a major concern

Newcastle know better than most teams how injuries can derail a season. So far in 2024/25, the Magpies have managed to avoid any serious setbacks, but Howe’s side are still competing in three competitions.

With Kelly on his way out of the club, Newcastle are just one or two injuries away from a defensive crisis.

Botman has only just returned from a lengthy injury and Lascelles is still not yet fit. Krafth has played a handful of games at centre-back but he would prefer to play on the right.

READ MORE: Newcastle United set for shock transfer U-turn after medical is booked

Choosing to not replace Kelly in this window is a huge risk. Especially if this is Howe’s contingency plan.

Newcastle will receive a PSR boost in the summer and there will be a much bigger budget to go out and land top targets, but waiting could prove to be costly.