Newcastle United yesterday announced the signing of Ki Sung-Yueng from Swansea on a free transfer and Rafa Benitez has been quick to welcome the 29-year-old to Newcastle. ‘It was an easy decision to bring him here’
“I’m pleased to welcome Ki to the club. He is a player with lots of Premier League and international experience and it was an easy decision to bring him here. He is the captain of his country, a good character and he will be a good addition to the squad.
Ki also had his say on joining Newcastle, “I’m so pleased I can join the club. I was always pleasantly surprised when I came to St. James’ Park to play against Newcastle – there is a great atmosphere and the passion from the fans is a great support to the players. Everyone knows how big this club is so I’m really looking forward to playing with my teammates and for the fans.”
When Newcastle United won promotion to the Premier League in 2016/17, many people believed they would struggle to stay up due to the lack of money spent on their squad. On the surface, Newcastle do not exactly seem blessed with top Premier League talents. However, Rafa Benitez was able to guide what is quite an average Newcastle side to a 10th place finish in the Premier League.
A big part of why Newcastle were able to finish so high in the table was due to the performances of club captain Jamal Lascelles and a few other key players. Now, however, given Newcastle finished in an impressive 10th place last season, they will need to bring in a few fresh faces in order to improve on their 2017/18 season with Ki being the first of those new players.