Newcastle United columnist John Gibson and ex-Newcastle United striker Malcolm Macdonald joined Steve Wraith on a recent edition of NUFC Matters to discuss the latest goings-on with the Toon and one of the topics of discussion that came up during the show was the possibility of former Newcastle United loanee Salomon Rondon returning to the club.
Rondon spent the 2018/19 season on loan with Newcastle United from West Bromwich Albion and the Venezuelan striker ended that season as the Toon’s second-highest goalscorer and second-highest assist provider in all competitions.
The Toon ultimately didn’t sign Rondon on a permanent deal last summer and instead, the 30-year-old made the move to Chinese Super League side Dalian Professional for £16.44m.
Wraith asked Gibson if he would like to see the Toon bring Rondon back to St. James’ Park during this recent edition of NUFC Matters and the Newcastle writer subsequently shared his thoughts on that potential move, saying: “There’s absolutely no question that he’s better than anything we’ve got, but almost anybody is.
“The trouble with the Rondon situation [is] – yes, I would take him on what we’ve got, but I know that privately, behind the scenes, Mike Ashley and his cohorts, the people that were advising him and that had his ear, were putting in a lot of bite about how Rondon wasn’t the right man for Newcastle age-wise, goals-wise, they wanted Rondon out the club as much as they wanted Joelinton in the club.
“So, with Mike Ashley still in charge of Newcastle United and the same people around him as were around him a year ago, I think the chances of Rondon coming back here are absolutely nil.”
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Judging by Gibson’s comments about Rondon, it appears that there is little chance of the 30-year-old making a return to the Toon this summer. Considering that Newcastle decided to buy a different centre forward last summer, Joelinton, instead of Rondon, it may not be too surprising to see that Gibson doesn’t believe the club will go back in for the Venezuelan.