NEWCASTLE UNITED have given Jamaal Lascelles, 32, the green light to leave the club in January.
Doing so will save the club £1million in wages.
The defender has been a servant at Newcastle for over 11 years, making him the longest-serving player.
Lascelles is the only player from the Championship winning team of 2017 still at the club.
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe revealed: “There’s a possibility that he could leave as well. Jamaal’s been an incredible servant. He’s a great leader for us behind the scenes. So, let’s wait and see what happens on his future.”
It’s reported that there is interest from Turkey, while Premier League relegation contenders West Ham have also been linked.
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Lascelles has been told he can leave the club if the deal is right.
Newcastle are eager to get the player’s salary off their books following his return from long-term injury. It is estimated that Lascelles earns a basic weekly salary of £45,000 plus bonuses.
If a deal goes through this month, the Toon will save around £1m in wages between now and the end of the season.
Lascelles signed in August 2014 from Nottingham Forest as part of a double deal including goalkeeper Karl Darlow for a fee of £7m.
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He has since made over 250 total appearances for the Magpies and was named captain ahead of the 2016/17 season, leading them to promotion from the Championship.
The Newcastle veteran suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury during the Premier League win over West Ham in March 2024.
He returned to the first-team squad in May 2025 against Chelsea, but was left an unused substitute. The last match day squad Lascelles featured in was against Brentford, with the game ending in a forgettable 3-1 loss, but again he didn’t come off the bench.
In total he’s made just two appearances this term – both from the bench with the most recent in September.
Eddie Howe recognises Lascelles as a “culture setter” for the squad, and has praised him for being a “brilliant professional”.
He’s also commended the centre-back’s immense leadership skills and said these attributes were strongly missed from the squad during his ACL rehabilitation.
Howe said his player’s recovery from injury has been “challenging” and “slow”.
In August 2024 Howe appointed Bruno Guimarães as the new “team captain”, describing the Brazilian as the ‘on-pitch leader.’
Lascelles’ authority decreased as he took on the role of “club captain”.
Speaking of his current fitness, Howe said: “He’s not training with us currently. He hasn’t felt well enough physically to train. I don’t necessarily think that he’s injured in the sense that he’s got one big injury, I just think his body’s not feeling great.”
