One of the big mysteries of Newcastle's season this term has been the status of Jonas Gutierrez. The long-serving Argentine winger had been first choice for the left-hand side of Newcastle's midfield for five seasons but after picking up an injury in The Magpies' awful 4-0 drubbing against Manchester City, he seemingly disappeared and became the forgotten man. Reports were that he had returned home to South America for undisclosed personal reasons before making the briefest of cameos from the bench at Cardiff City in early October, before then barely appearing in any squad for the rest of the season and making no first-team appearances. He has appeared for just 63 minutes in total this season. Alan Oliver at the Daily Mirror tried to solve the Jonas mystery last month by claiming that Gutierrez's lack of football for Newcastle this season wasn't an accident and the hierarchy at St. James' Park were more or less forcing him out of the team because of a reported clause in his contract that would see him hit an extension on his current deal that runs out in 2015 if he played an undisclosed amount of further appearances (likely 200 given he was sitting on the 193 mark). With Gutierrez likely to be a high earner given his years of service, particularly stemming from the days that higher salaries were more common-place and the fact that he turned 30 last year (and would be 32 when his contract runs out in summer of 2015), meant his future at St. James' Park always looked numbered given the Toon's recent policy to off-load players after they turn 30. Whether or not the contract extension story in the press is true (and the following likely hints that it is), Gutierrez sent out an emotional farewell to fans on Twitter on Saturday night in response to a fan as an exit looks imminent;
"Thank you mate. It was an honor and a pleasure to play with the Newcastle shirt and to have the support of the Geordie." "Thanks for the messages. I enjoy my 5 years at the club, I hope the club finish the highest this season and the best to my team mates."
There are reports that his old manager Chris Hughton is interested in bringing Gutierrez to Norwich City in this month's transfer window, with the wheeler-dealer Harry Redknapp also eyeing him for Queens Park Rangers. A move away from St. James' would suit both Newcastle and the player as Jonas knows he will need five months of regular football to even be in consideration for this summer's World Cup in his home continent (the latter which leads me to believe he would prefer a move back home). Jonas was brought to Newcastle under the brief managerial stint of Kevin Keegan during his return in 2008 along with his national compatriot Fabricio Coloccini, a season that saw the club relegated. Given his high-wages and long-term contract and the high-fee Newcastle paid for both players (Jonas' deal was initially a bosman but a court order eventually dictated that Newcastle had to play £5.2 million to Real Mallorca for his services), Gutierrez and Coloccini stayed with The Magpies during their Championship season where they were clearly too good for that level. Newcastle walked the title and Gutierrez/Coloccini remained first team choices for the new Premier League era, acting as vice-captain and captain respectively when Kevin Nolan left in 2011. Gutierrez made 34 appearances in the Premier League last season and 177 league appearances in total. Including cups his final tally was 193 appearances with 11 goals. As a Newcastle fan who watched the majority of his appearances for the club, I'd like to thank Gutierrez for his hard-work ethic and commitment to the cause that was refreshing - a shining example for how an overseas player can become a cult hero by wearing their heart on their sleeve. He may have been frustrating to watch at times given his lack of a final product but full-backs the league over would likely admit that he was a nightmare to play against, not just for his ability to duck and weave both directions but also his tough-tackling and bitey defensive style that never gave the ball-player room to breathe.
Matt Holmes is the co-founder of What Culture, formerly known as Obsessed With Film. He has been blogging about pop culture and entertainment since 2006 and has written over 10,000 articles.
