Newcastle United faced the prospect of losing Martin Dubravka in the January transfer window during a time when first-choice goalkeeper Nick Pope remains sidelined.
There was talk earlier this month that Nick Pope was expected to return to action in time for the Bournemouth game which could have seen Martin Dubravka's proposed move to Saudi Arabian side Al-Shabab go through.
Then, Dubravka became a key figure in Newcastle's superb run of form. His calm head at the back allowed the defence to use the Slovakian as an outlet to play out from the back without the fear that Pope's dodgy footwork often brings.
On top of that, Dubravka has kept seven clean sheets in the last ten games, although conceding four on Saturday has taken the shine off the apple somewhat.
Fans have been calling for Dubravka to stay, and more importantly, Eddie Howe has too and it seems they have been granted their wish.
The Daily Mail reports that Newcastle have successfully talked the 36-year-old into staying beyond this month.
Dubravka had reportedly started packing and had even said goodbye to his neighbours before the U-turn.
Nick Pope is due to return to the side soon, but now Eddie Howe must choose whether to stick with Dubravka who has done so well, or plonk Pope straight back into the lineup.
It would feel a bit off if, after all this, Nick Pope just gets handed his spot back. We'd like to see Dubravka continue between the sticks for now to see whether Saturday was a blip or a return to last season's form.
As for Dubravka's future beyond this season, the report by the Mail used the term 'on hold' when talking about the move to Al-Shabab, so we'll wait to see if that's resurrected in the summer.
PL | GD | PTS | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
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25 | 36 | 60 |
2 |
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25 | 29 | 53 |
3 |
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25 | 12 | 47 |
4 |
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25 | 17 | 44 |
5 |
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25 | 15 | 43 |
6 |
![]() |
25 | 13 | 43 |
7 |
![]() |
25 | 9 | 41 |
8 |
![]() |
25 | 5 | 39 |
9 |
![]() |
25 | -3 | 38 |
10 |
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25 | 0 | 37 |
11 |
![]() |
25 | 1 | 34 |
12 |
![]() |
25 | 12 | 30 |
13 |
![]() |
25 | -3 | 30 |
14 |
![]() |
25 | -4 | 30 |
15 |
![]() |
25 | -7 | 29 |
16 |
![]() |
25 | -18 | 27 |
17 |
![]() |
25 | -19 | 19 |
18 |
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25 | -27 | 17 |
19 |
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25 | -30 | 17 |
20 |
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25 | -38 | 9 |