England goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale says the prospect of playing under manager Eddie Howe again was an influential factor in his decision to join Newcastle.
The 27-year-old completed a season-long loan move to the Magpies from Southampton on Saturday.
Howe signed Ramsdale from Sheffield United in 2017 for around £800,000 when he was manager at Bournemouth.
“Working with the manager and his coaching staff again was a big draw for me,” said Ramsdale.
“They’ve already had a great influence on my career and the gaffer turned me from a man into a professional footballer at Bournemouth.
“He really showed me the ropes so the manager and his coaching staff were a huge selling point for me to come here.”
Newcastle switched their attention to Ramsdale after Manchester City signed their previous target James Trafford from Burnley.
The goalkeeper is the Magpies’ third signing of the summer, following the acquisitions of Anthony Elanga from Nottingham Forest and Antonio Cordero from Malaga.
The club rejected a bid of around £110m from Liverpool for striker Alexander Isak on Friday.
Newcastle, who are keen to keep the Swede, value the forward at around £150m.
How does Ramsdale compare to Newcastle’s goalkeepers?
When Nick Pope started against Italy at the San Siro in September 2022 he became the first Newcastle goalkeeper to win a senior England cap for 121 years. Three years later and the Magpies have another England international stopper on their books.
But Newcastle fans could be forgiven for any apprehension around signing a goalkeeper who has suffered relegation with four different clubs.
Aaron Ramsdale was in the Southampton side that went down with 12 points last term and he also dropped out of the Premier League with Sheffield United in 2020-21, Bournemouth in 2019-20 and endured a League Two demotion while on loan at Chesterfield seven years ago.
He conceded 66 goals and kept just three top-flight clean sheets across his 30 league appearances last season. In total, he has made 183 Premier League appearances – only 38 fewer than current Newcastle number one Pope.
Newcastle also have Martin Dubravka who performed well when called upon last term but will turn 37 in January.