Newcastle would do well by swapping Jonjo Shelvey for Tom Cairney
A report by The Sun has indicated that Fulham manager Claudio Ranieri wants to swap captain Tom Cairney for Newcastle United star Jonjo Shelvey. The former Swansea City man has fallen out with manager Rafael Benitez at St. James’ Park, but the question for the former Liverpool to answer is will Cairney make a difference?
The Fulham captain has fallen out favour with Ranieri in recent weeks and the former Leicester City manager wants a deep-lying playmaker. His targets are Shelvey and Pedro Obiang from West Ham (h/t The Sun), with Ranieri opting to swap the 28-year-old Cairney with either Premier League side.
Cairney has struggled to make an impact this season for the Cottagers, making 14 appearances and producing just one assist in that time. This does seem rather feeble compared to his stats last season where the 28-year-old was a crucial cog in helping Fulham reach the Premier League.
But with the arrivals of Jean Michel Seri and Frank-Andre Zambo Anguissa, things have changed for the Nottingham man and maybe a move would do both parties well.
Newcastle need creative players and there are few players available that can suit their budget. And Cairney fits the profile. But given his struggles in the more physical and faster Premier League, maybe Benitez could go for someone else to survive in the English top tier.
However, there could be another issue at play. With Cairney struggling under Ranieri, he could turn into a better player under Rafael Benitez. The Magpies do have Ayoze Perez and even Christian Atsu, both of whom have played as a No. 10, but neither has succeeded. As a result, Newcastle find themselves in a precarious position this January.
The Magpies need a prolific goalscorer as well and swapping Jonjo Shelvey, a player clearly not in Benitez’s plans at the moment, for a creative midfielder in his prime makes absolute sense. Not only that, it saves money for any future projects or players that the club want to invest in.
Only time will tell if Tom Cairney has problems with the manager or the league itself, but hopefully, it’s the former and not the latter.
