Vurnon Anita is set to make a departure from Newcastle this summer as Rafa Benitez looks to inject fresh blood into his United squad.
United’s retained list will be released in the coming days and Anita and Yoan Gouffran are the two high-profile players who are out-of-contract. According to sources close to Anita, hopes of securing an extension are fading despite Benitez giving him a high-profile role during the Championship season.
Indeed Anita’s name has been circulated to clubs across Europe as he begins to make plans for life after Newcastle, where he has been since a £5million move in 2012.
United had originally pondered whether to offer Anita and Gouffran both short-term deals to help build a squad for the Premier League, but it now appears that Benitez favours bringing in new players to challenge in the midfield and defensive areas that the Holland player covered last season.
The club remain tight-lipped on the retained list and Anita was hoping to stay. But feelers are being put on his behalf about interest in signing him later this summer.
At 28, Anita will be looking for a big contract and may chose to move abroad, where he could potentially land a lucrative deal. He was linked with a move to Napoli in the Italian press on Wednesday and there is also interest in Holland and in Germany.
Benitez is a big fan of Anita’s “intelligence” and earlier this month he paid tribute to the player for playing through the pain since January to help Newcastle’s promotion effort.
But the Spaniard is looking to make substantial changes this summer and is considering an injection of younger, fringe players who can challenge the first team. Some of these might be involved in the under-23s but they would be expected to step up and fill the gap if Newcastle have injury problems.
Benitez has funds to reshape Newcastle this summer but he will work to a budget that means taking some tough decisions. Given the noises coming from St James’ Park, it appears as though Anita is one of the first victims of Benitez’s ruthlessness.