His story was one that ended on a cliffhanger when Newcastle United failed to sell, loan, or extend Rob Elliot. Now the club has made clear they intend to retain their keeper.
In a post by the club’s official website, Rob Elliot has signed a new contract extension. It’s not surprising that the club extended Elliot’s contract. It’s more surprising that the contract is for four more years.
Rob Elliot suffered the same injury as Tim Krul while on international duty. Both keepers suffered an ACL injury that kept them out of action for the rest of the season. Their injuries led to Karl Darlow being thrown into the spotlight.
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But it wasn’t all that bad. Karl Darlow proved himself as an adept keeper, and Newcastle United has signed Matz Sels who has performed quite well. But now it begs the question as to where it leaves Elliot in the lineup.
Elliot is still not fully recovered from his knee injury, and the club will continue working with him to pull him through. But ACL injuries have destroyed careers. Not many players, let alone keepers, come back the same after an injury like that.
Where Does This Leave Rob Elliot?
With Matz Sels and Karl Darlow eating up all the playing time, does this throw Elliot back to the bench? No necessarily. Some may argue against keeping Elliot, and I know many who would say the club should retain Tim Krul over the Irish goalkeeper. But Elliot can bring a lot.
Rob Elliot, 30, has enough experience to keep Newcastle United’s dressing room in good shape. He can serve as a mentor to both Darlow and Sels. Rafa Benitez has made it clear that Tim Krul no longer has a future at Newcastle United. Despite signing a one-year contract extension, Krul is expected to be sold next summer.
Rafa had this to say about the deal:
“It shows our confidence in him as a goalkeeper for now and for the future. Hopefully he will be challenging for the goalkeeper position again very soon.”
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Elliot, instead, will not be thrown to the bench. Rather, Benitez has plans to continue to let Elliot run the show. Both Matz Sels and Karl Darlow are young keepers and Benitez is enjoying the opportunity to let both players settle in to a first-team spot.
Rob Elliot impressed last season after coming in for Tim Krul after the Dutch international suffered an ACL injury. Elliot is reaching that point in his career where he will be at the top of his game. Hopefully, fans are not let down.
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