Newcastle United have not been at their very best this season but there have been some moments of individual brilliance that have stood out to Shay Given.
There’s a number of people who believe that the team as a whole has been underperforming after last year’s Champions League heroics, but that doesn’t mean that every player has had a disappointing season.
Speaking to Tribal Football, former Newcastle goalkeeper Given has claimed that Kieran Trippier has been brilliant this season despite the bit of a struggle he went through in December and January which he has now put far behind him.
Given says Newcastle man leaving would have been ‘huge blow’
Trippier did come close to leaving Newcastle in January when Bayern Munich were showing serious interest in reuniting the defender with his former Tottenham teammate Harry Kane.
However, the bids that were submitted by the Bundesliga champions were deemed not high enough for a player of Trippier’s quality and he ended up staying on Tyneside at least until the summer.
Very recently the £12m signing declared how happy he is at Newcastle and that he wasn’t looking for a move in January despite some reports, and now he’s fully committed to helping the team finish on a high this season.
Given is a huge fan of the 33-year-old and felt that losing him in the middle of a season would have been a devastating blow to Newcastle’s European hopes, even if they do have an exciting backup option waiting in the wings.
On Trippier, Given said: “He’s been absolutely brilliant and he’s shown real leadership qualities. Every time Eddie Howe speaks about him, it gets highlighted what a great player he is, but also what he does off the pitch as well. He’s the main voice and it would have been a huge blow if he had left for Bayern Munich in January.”
Trippier could still be key for Newcastle next year
The experienced right-back just has one more year left on his current contract at St James’ Park, so Newcastle are going to have to make a decision on his future very soon.
This will likely be the last window where they can still get a decent fee for his services – Bayern were willing to pay £13m in January – before he either walks on a free or is too old to be deemed of high value.
As Given suggests, you can still see that Trippier still boasts a lot of quality – 10 assists in the Premier League already – and with his game not relying pace it’s fair to say that he could still have another couple of season playing at the very top of his game for Newcastle.
He could still have a very important role to play in Eddie Howe’s team next season and his experience, as ever, will come in handy as they look to make a push back towards the top of the division.
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