Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe admitted he was “very reluctant” to let defender Lloyd Kelly join Juventus in the winter transfer window and that the final call was taken out of his hands.
But Howe also conceded that continuing concerns over possible breaches to Premier League Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) forced the club's hand.
Kelly only joined Newcastle on a free transfer from Bournemouth last summer but is already heading to pastures new after a surprise loan move to the Serie A side, which will become a permanent £20 million deal at the end of the season.
Newcastle also sold winger Miguel Almiron back to Major League Soccer side Atlanta United for around £10m after a six-year stint on Tyneside for the former club-record signing.
It means the Magpies lost two squad players in the window that closed on Monday without anyone coming in the other direction.
Speaking ahead of Wednesday's League Cup semi-final second-leg against Arsenal at St James' Park – with Newcastle enjoying a 2-0 advantage from the first game in North London – Howe said of Kelly's exit: “I don't think it was necessarily my decision to let him leave.
“It's very reluctant from our side because he's a player that had just recently signed and we believed in him and his qualities.
“It was slightly frustrating for him that he hasn't played more. In part really due to the form of the other players around him.
“But I think we're in the world, and we have in this window, of trying to manage PSR. I'm trying to make decisions that benefit us in the long term, and this is one of those decisions.
“I'm sure he'll do well in Italy, and it's an exciting new challenge for him.”
This has been the third transfer window in succession that Howe has been unable to make a significant improvement to his squad due to PSR restrictions.
Last summer, Newcastle were forced to sell Elliot Anderson (£35m) and Yankuba Minteh (£30m) to Premier League rivals Nottingham Forest and Brighton, respectively.
Howe said at the time he was “really disappointed to lose them both” but that the club had been “backed into a corner” by PSR rules. The club's Saudi Arabian-backed owners had spent around £400m following their takeover in October 2021.
Only Kelly and £15m forward Will Osula were bought pre-season and, despite around £65m being banked in sales, no purchases have been made in the new year.
“It was not a case really of looking at incomings, it was a case of trying to manage outgoings really and trying to not weaken the squad to a point where the team's affected,” added Howe.
“But we also future plan and make sure that we control everything in terms of our PSR level, so I think we've done that. I think it's been successful in that regard.
“These things can sometimes act as a strength for you and that's very much how I am trying to pull the group together, have real unity in smaller numbers, and we keep fighting in every phase. Sometimes that unity can be really, really powerful.
“I don't think it's ideal. We'd love to have brought new energy into the group – that's being very honest – but that wasn't to be our world in this window, so we have to make the best of the situation.”
Newcastle are still going strong in three competitions this season. They sit sixth in the Premier League, just two points behind Chelsea in fourth – despite falling to a home defeat against Fulham last weekend – with fifth place potentially securing a Champions League spot.
If they come through against title challengers Arsenal on Wednesday, the Magpies will play in their second League Cup final in three seasons – having lost to Manchester United at Wembley in 2023. And then on Saturday, Howe's side travel to third-tier Birmingham City in the FA Cup fourth round.
First up is the Gunners on Tyneside and in his pre-match press conference on Tuesday, Howe made it clear the job is very much not completed.
“My message is, we are at the halfway point in the tie. Against any opposition the game is still very much alive,” said Howe, who will make a late call on Joelinton's knee injury before deciding whether the Brazilian midfielder is fit enough to play.
“We have to approach the game in a really positive and aggressive way, try to be ourselves, there will be no deviation from that. We are in a good position and need to make the most of every opportunity.
“Us and the crowd have become a really potent team together and that's what we're going to need.”
