Coloccini will be 34 this upcoming season. He has had arguably the two poorest seasons of his stint on Tyneside in 2013-14 and 2014-15. He has previously said that he would like to go back to Argentina. Despite all of this, you would still expect him back. He remains club captain and still (slightly worryingly) the best centre-back the club have on the books. To be honest, one of the main reasons he has a chance to come back is his relationship with the club's owner Mike Ashley, who considered sticking the Argentine in charge after Alan Pardew's departure, but remains largely popular with the crowd. Let's not take anything away from Coloccini as he has been one of the better defenders at the club over the past decade but he is living on past merits right now. A lack of competition means he still starts every game but, with Jamaal Lascelles coming back from Nottingham Forest and another centre-half expected during the current window, it could be that his usage starts to drop a little bit as the years appear to be beginning to catch up with him. Current likelihood of coming back: 7/10Recommendation: Coloccini's days playing every game are fading and his influence on the defence is not what it was but he is certainly a different type of defender to those at the club already. Comfortable on the ball and using his intelligence to try and make up for his lack of pace or power, he possesses a composure that Steven Taylor and Mike Williamson do not and could be a great role model for Lascelles, whose physicality and pace could be a great boost to Coloccini if the two play alongside each other. Coloccini will have to consider whether he still wants to return to Argentina - and there may be better candidates to take over the captaincy like Jack Colback - but as a popular and fairly steady hand in defence, he already seems the most likely candidate to get a contract extension. Ultimately he just needs to ensure that his body doesn't completely fail him this season if he wants to keep playing at the highest level and continue to act as a positive figure behind the scenes around the club. For all the latest NUFC News, Views and Transfers make sure to follow whatculture.com/NUFC on Twitter and Facebook.
NUFC contributor for whatculture.com/nufc.
University of Edinburgh graduate with a love of sport, in particular Newcastle United surprisingly enough. When I'm not shaking my head at Paul Dummett and Yoan Gouffran, I'm usually reading something or watching films of varying quality.
