£15m former Premier League star wanted by Norwich City & Middlesbrough after Newcastle United snub
Jamal Lewis is looking for a new club following his release from Newcastle United last month.
Lewis joined Newcastle United from Norwich City for £15million back in 2020 but wasn’t able to live up to his price-tag as he was limited to just 36 first-team appearances for the club over five years before leaving on a free transfer.
After a loan spell at Watford in 2023/24 which saw the Championship side turn down an option to buy the player from Newcastle, Lewis spent the first half of last season on loan at Sao Paulo in Brazil.
The 27-year-old made six appearances for Sao Paulo, who had an option to make the deal permanent as well but his move was ultimately cut short due to an ankle injury that required surgery.
Lewis returned to England for the second half of the 2024/25 season and was even named in Newcastle’s 25-man Premier League squad for the second half of the campaign despite not training with the first-team as he continued his injury rehabilitation.
Newcastle confirmed Lewis would be leaving the club in the club’s retained list published in early June.
Now officially a free agent, the left-back has attracted some Championship interest.
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Championship trio interested in former NUFC man
Lewis has already been linked with a potential return to Norwich after five years away from the club but there are two other teams reportedly interested in his services this summer.
According to Sportsboom, Middlesbrough and West Bromwich Albion are also ‘keen’ on signing Lewis on a free transfer.
There is also interest from League One as Lewis looks to get back playing regularly after his injury absence.
Lewis has been capped 39 times for Northern Ireland and has 180 professional club appearances to his name, including 59 in the Premier League.
A tough time for Jamal Lewis at Newcastle United
Speaking back in 2023 as a Newcastle player, Lewis admitted he had experienced ‘dark days’ during his time at the club.
“One hundred percent, there have been dark days,” Lewis said. “Obviously football is all glitz and glamour but it’s the darker side or the psychological side of football that is not talked about as much as it probably should be.
“It’s been difficult going from playing week in, week out at Norwich to not playing and then getting injured and having a tricky injury that I can’t really get on top of. It can play a very negative part in your mental wellbeing.”
Despite Lewis’ lack of first-team action at Newcastle, he remained a well-regarded player by head coach Eddie Howe, who was keen to keep him as part of his squad for the pre-season trips to the United States and Japan before loaning him out.
“I’ve always really rated him and held him in high regard ever since his Norwich days when I was a really big fan of his,” Howe said. “Working with him, a great attitude, wants to improve and he’s really benefited from his loan spell. Coming back into the group, he’s trained really well.
“Ultimately, a lot will depend on what he wants, if he wants to continue playing football and it might be difficult for me to guarantee him that so we’ll wait and see.”