10 forgotten Newcastle players from the Premier League era

Newcastle's rollercoaster Premier League journey has featured several iconic names — and many they would rather not think about.

We remind ourselves of the players it would be easy to forget ever appeared in the black and white of one of English football's most celebrated clubs.

Darren Huckerby (1995-96)

Darren Huckerby's accomplished career saw him impress for Coventry, Manchester City and Norwich — but his spell at Newcastle was not such a success.

The forward played just one Premier League match for the Magpies before being flogged to the Sky Blues.

Ian Rush (1997-98)

Goalscoring legend Ian Rush is one of Liverpool's greatest ever players, netting 346 times to become their all-time leading marksman.

His attempt to keep the magic alive at St James' Park after leaving Anfield was not so successful.

Louis Saha (1999)

It was difficult to imagine a future in English football for Louis Saha when his Newcastle loan spell featuring 12 appearances and two goals ended in 1999.

But he looked a different player when he arrived at Fulham a year later, going on to become a favourite in West London as well as at Manchester United and Everton.

Sylvain Distin (2001-02)

Another loan signing who soon moved permanently to a different English club, Sylvain Distin played 35 matches for the Toon in the 2001-02 season.

He then made his name at Manchester City, Portsmouth and Everton.

Sol Campbell (2010-11)

Newcastle were Sol Campbell's final club, after a short stint at Notts County and an unusual return to Arsenal.

He was released after playing eight times and retired a year later.

Stephen Ireland (2011)

An innocuous loan spell at St James' Park from Aston Villa in 2011 was not a memorable stage of Stephen Ireland's career.

He was injured when he signed for the club and was forced to apologise after being pictured on a night out while rehabilitating.

Luuk de Jong (2014)

Luuk de Jong has had a successful career around Europe but could not make it work at Newcastle.

The Netherlands international failed to score in 12 outings for the Magpies and went on to play for PSV Eindhoven, Sevilla and Barcelona.

Ivan Toney (2015-18)

Ivan Toney managed two league appearances for Newcastle in between being farmed out on six different loan spells.

Though he has made fast progress since leaving Tyneside, they must regret not giving him more of a chance.

Mikel Merino (2017-18)

Perhaps better suited to LaLiga, Mikel Merino will not have been viewed by many Newcastle fans as a future Champions League performer and Spain international.

He scored one goal in 25 appearances before moving to Real Sociedad, for whom he has been a revelation.

Danny Rose (2020)

Leaving Tottenham for a loan spell in the North East looked like a switch that could get Danny Rose's career moving again.

Instead, his stint was interrupted by the football hiatus during the coronavirus pandemic and there was no realistic chance he would sign permanently.