The 3 Newcastle players McClaren should offload in January

Newcastle United have managed to pull themselves out of the relegation zone, but still need a lot to change if they are to secure Premier League survival, priced at 5/4 for relegation with Ladbrokes.

The current squad clearly aren’t delivering and it may be time to cut some of them loose to free up space for signings to come in during the January window.

When looking at the team, you can pinpoint three players that Steve McClaren could easily get rid of to breathe some fresh air into the St James’ Park dressing room.

With a number of options available in January, it wouldn’t take too much to improve the team.

Here are the players the Magpies could easily get rid of:

Fabricio Coloccini

He was loved by the Toon during his first few seasons in the North East, but now even the most patient Newcastle fan would be forgiven for losing faith in the Argentine.

Despite being the third highest ranked player in the squad in terms of minutes played, he ranks ninth in tackles per game below the likes of Ayoze Perez, not what you want from a commanding centre-back.

Indeed, he doesn’t rank top in the team for any defensive statistic, indicating there are more capable younger players to take over from the squad’s oldest member.

The 33-year-old’s best years are clearly behind him and it is time for McClaren to bed in some new talent.

Yoan Gouffran

Heralded as a future star when he made his breakthrough in his native France, fans on Tyneside have yet to see any indication of this.

After a semi-promising 2013/14 season where he scored in five consecutive games, he’s never been able to match that and only found the net twice since.

He’s only played 66 minutes this season, despite the Magpies currently topping the injuries table, and McClaren clearly doesn’t have faith in the 29-year-old.

Papiss Cisse

Another player whose best years may be behind him, he’s fallen behind Aleksandar Mitrovic in the front-line pecking order.

His previous exploits will undoubtedly have earned him a contract as one of Newcastle’s top earners and cashing in on him could help free up funds that could be redistributed elsewhere.

The Magpies have Siem de Jong and Emmanuel Riviere who could deputise for Mitrovic if needed, meaning they don’t need to keep on this expensive 30-year-old.

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