England defender Kieran Trippier completes move to Newcastle

England defender Kieran Trippier is ready to throw himself into the battle for Premier League survival after completing his eye-catching move from Atletico Madrid to Newcastle.

The 31-year-old full-back finally became the first signing under the club’s Saudi-backed owners on Friday morning, two days after arriving on Tyneside for a medical.

He has signed on a two-and-a-half-year deal for an undisclosed fee, understood to be £12million plus add-ons.

Trippier will renew his acquaintance with head coach Eddie Howe, who signed him for Burnley a decade ago, as he attempts to help the Magpies dig themselves out of a relegation hole.

He said: “I’m delighted to be joining this fantastic club. I really enjoyed my time in Madrid, but when I became aware of interest from Newcastle United, and having worked with Eddie Howe before, I knew this was where I wanted to be.

“I’m aware there is a lot of work ahead of us, but I know the demands of the Premier League well and I know what an amazing club this is with very talented players. I can’t wait to get started and I’m excited to step out at St James’ Park as a Newcastle player.”

Newcastle, who entertain League One Cambridge in the FA Cup third round on Friday, sit just one place off the foot of the table at the halfway stage in their top-flight campaign, only two points from safety but among a group of four sides along with Norwich, Burnley and Watford in danger of being cast adrift.

The consortium put together by financier Amanda Staveley to buy the club from former owner Mike Ashley in October last year boasts immense wealth and is currently engaged in a concerted recruitment drive, with Everton defender Lucas Digne, Burnley’s James Tarkowski and Juventus midfielder Aaron Ramsey among the names they have been linked with in recent days.

Howe knows there is much work still to be done during the January transfer window, a task which has become even more challenging with striker Callum Wilson facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines with a calf injury, but he was delighted to have made a first breakthrough.

He said: “I am really pleased to welcome Kieran to Newcastle United. I have long admired his abilities and have followed his career, so when the opportunity arose to secure him, we didn’t hesitate.

“A lot of hard work has gone into planning for the January transfer window long before the month began, which is clear in how quickly we have been able to complete this move.

“I would like to thank everyone involved, particularly our owners, and I’m very much looking forward to working with Kieran again on the training pitch.”

Trippier began his career at Manchester City and after loan spells at Barnsley and Burnley, made a permanent move to Turf Moor in January 2012 and helped the Clarets win promotion to the Premier League.

He signed Tottenham during the summer of 2015 and won the first of his 35 England caps against France in June 2017 before heading for Spain in July 2019, and he was part of the Atletico side which claimed the LaLiga title last season.

At international level, he started for his country in both the 2018 World Cup semi-final against Croatia and last summer’s Euro 2020 final defeat by Italy.