As usual, Premier League clubs have been busy during the summer, with transfer offers being sent left and right. Plenty of hot deals were already signed, many more are on the verge of being completed, but one name stands out the most, it seems.
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Harvey Barnes’ Says Goodbye to Childhood Team
After spending 16 long years defending the Foxes’ colors, Harvey Barnes had a decision to make. Does he want to spend the 2023/24 season desperately trying to help Leicester climb back to the Premier League, or does he want to open a new chapter in his professional career?
The 25-year-old opted for the latter. Harvey didn’t have anything else to prove with the Leicester jersey. Harvey is a product of Leicester City’s youth academy and he’s been playing for the Foxes throughout most of his career.
Bagging 13 goals and one assist in the 2022/23 season wasn’t good enough, as Leicester finished their campaign in 17th place, thus getting relegated to the Championship.
The fans were certainly understanding of Barnes’ decision to move, as it wouldn’t’ve been right for them to demand he stays. After all, such a high-stature player has no place playing in England’s tier 2 league.
Key Role for New Magpies Star Barnes
After a massive £38m bid from Premier League’s Newcastle, the Foxes and Harvey Barnes parted ways and now, we’ll see the 25-year-old player defend the Magpies’ black-and-white colors.
The deal goes through the 2027/28 season, so there’s absolutely no pressure for Harvey to make an instant impact, but knowing his unyielding character, he’d want to quickly make it to Eddie Howe’s starting XI.
Magpies’ new number 15 will likely have an easy time booking his starting position, as coach Howe’s ambitions will hardly give 22-year-old up-and-coming winger Anthony Gordon many chances. Harvey’s lack of competition for his position will surely give him room to show his undeniable class.
Harvey Barnes’ unofficial Magpies debut
Straight into the action! 💪@harveybarnes97 📸 pic.twitter.com/uLiaQhUZQ9
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) July 24, 2023
An unofficial Harvey Barnes debut already happened. The Magpies are enjoying their summer in the United States, where they have a couple of games scheduled to be played.
On the 24 of July, Newcastle faced old rivals Aston Villa at Lincoln Financial Field. While the game itself was certainly thrilling, as it ended in a fascinating 3-3, the Magpies’ fans were undoubtedly eager to see Harvey Barnes make his unofficial debut with the black-and-white jersey.
Of course, Harvey’s name wasn’t among the starters’ but he did make an appearance in the 70th minute of the game when he came in for midfielder Matt Targett. Harvey made a bunch of world-class passes and gave the fans a taste of what they can expect from their new star player. Sure, he couldn’t put his name on the scoreboard or supply a teammate with an assist, but fans shouldn’t be too demanding of the 25-year-old.
When will Harvey Barnes make his official debut?
The irony behind Harvey Barnes’ unofficial and official debuts is that they can both happen versus Aston Villa. As we said earlier, he already played for the Magpies in the United States where Newcastle faced Aston Villa on the 24th of July, but the two teams will collide sooner than you’d think.
So, which are the possible dates for us to see Harvey Barnes make his official debut?
- Newcastle vs Aston Villa – 12th of August, 2023
- Champions League Group Stage – 19-20 September or 3-4 October
The most likely date seems Newcastle’s opening Premier League game versus Aston Villa on the 12th of August, but should Harvey sustain an injury, then a CL Group Stage match will probably be his official debut for the Magpies.
