Newcastle United £2.5m transfer exit officially blocked - 'unique' player has already agreed 2026 deal
Kieran Trippier is set to stay at Newcastle United following serious transfer interest from Turkish club Galatasaray.
Galatasaray were interested in signing Trippier during the winter transfer window with reports from Turkey linking the Super Lig club with a £2.5million bid. But both Newcastle and head coach Eddie Howe were keen in wanting to keep Trippier, who did not push for a move away.
There was a risk Newcastle could lose Trippier after the winter transfer window shut for Premier League clubs last Monday as the transfer window in Turkey remained open until February 11. But now that window has officially passed, Galatasaray are blocked from signing Trippier or any other contracted player until the summer.
While other transfer windows remain open across the world, the Turkish window was the last one that had Premier League clubs wary of losing important first-team players without being able to replace them.
Trippier is under contract at Newcastle until June 2026 though his latest contract extension was not officially announced by the club, where his future remains uncertain. The former England international has been regularly linked with a move away from the club since a £13million bid from Bayern Munich was rejected last January.
The 34-year-old has been a bit-part player for Newcastle over the last 12 months having spent an extended period as captain previously. But last Wednesday, Trippier demonstrated his importance on the pitch for Howe’s side as he put in an impressive display to help Newcastle beat Arsenal 2-0 at St James’ Park and reach the Carabao Cup final for the second time in three seasons.
Trippier led Newcastle out at Wembley back in 2023. While he is set to be part of the squad for the match against Liverpool on March 16, it will likely be Bruno Guimaraes who captains this side this time around.
Eddie Howe determined to keep Kieran Trippier at Newcastle United
Howe has been keen to stress Trippier’s importance amid reports linking the defender with a move away from St James’ Park.
“No part of us wanted to lose Kieran,” said the Newcastle head coach. “He’s had a difficult season and not so much on the pitch. He’s had a couple of fitness issues that just halted his progress.
“He then came back into the team and had a really good couple of performances around Christmas time and showed his qualities again having not played a lot of football. To then play and perform in high-level games is a real skill and is not easy to do.
“He has been able to do that consistently for us. He then came in against Arsenal and I thought he was magnificent.
“Tino Livramento has had a really good season and obviously Emil Krafth can play at right back, so there is real competition for places. We love the players we have.
“But Kieran is unique, there is no-one who can do what he can do - set-play delivery, passing ability and his overall leadership in unique. He is someone we definitely see hopefully staying and having a big impact in the second half of the season.”