As £6m investments go, Matz Sels wasn’t a bad shout when Newcastle decided to buy the Belgian goalkeeper, but, unfortunately, things didn’t go to plan.
Despite keeping four clean sheets in his first nine games, the now 26-year-old was quickly pushed to one side at St James’ Park, never playing again for the Magpies.
Sent on loan to Anderlecht last season, Sels was eventually bought by Strasbourg in the summer for £3.5m, where he has gone from strength to strength, now seen as one of the best in the league as his club currently sits ninth in the table.
Initially meant to stay at Anderlecht after his loan, the goalkeeper saw his exit from Newcastle collapse because of ‘stupidities’.
He told Sport/Foot: “Sometimes, it’s a question of details: you can be transferred because your agent is friends with the manager of a club. It’s a cliché, but when you work hard enough, something opens up. I would have liked to stay, yes, otherwise I wouldn’t have found an agreement with them.
“It could have worked out if people put a bit of effort in. I know how it works. I need to do my job on the pitch but also play these little games
Despite wanting to stay, Sels did find certain aspects of being at big clubs like Anderlecht and with Newcastle rather frustrating, like the team atmosphere, normally used to being a part of a big family when he was at Gent.
He said: “The change was tough [at Newcastle]. I went from a group of friends to a dressing room where players were mostly looking out for themselves. At Anderlecht too, it was each to their own in a way. My teammates there were more like colleagues than anything else.”
Now, he’s back in a smaller club where he’s adored by fans and pundits alike, and where everything is going rather well.
They say everything happens for a reason, and it seems Sels needed to go through a couple of downs to land on his feet again.
