Newcastle Transfers: 8 Players Rafa Benitez Still Needs To Get Rid Of

5. Haris Vuckic

“I spoke to (Steve) McClaren and he wants me to play games. Hopefully I can do well, go back to Newcastle and take it from there. I was a bit disappointed because I wanted my chance there.” - Haris Vuckic, January 2016.

Haris Vuckic was always hailed as the next big thing at St. James’ Park, and he is still clinging onto that dream, no matter how distant it might be now. By now, he might have expected his Tyneside career to have progressed a little further than it has.

Let’s face facts though - Vuckic is nearly 24. You could count on one hand the amount of league games he has played for the club in the last five years. Since netting his only Newcastle goal against Atromitos in August 2012, the youngster has netted just 15 times across three separate loan spells - against lower opposition.

His last two loan periods included stints in the Scottish Championship and League One. These are not the typical telltale signs of a man who is about to burst onto the bigtime. You’d have to think that the Slovenian’s chance might have come and gone, with Adam Armstrong, Jamie Sterry and Rolando Aarons the new stars of the future.