Matt Ritchie joins Newcastle United in £12million deal – Twitter Reacts

Matt Ritchie has joined Newcastle for a fee believed to be around £12 million, which will surprise many, considering he was a key player for AFC Bournemouth. He is replacing Andros Townsend in the squad, who has today joined Crystal Palace.

Ritchie had been the subject of a bid from West Ham United earlier in the summer and it is a huge coup for Rafa Benitez to bring him to St. James’ Park. He was a revelation during The Cherries’ promotion campaign of 2014/15 and Newcastle will be hoping for a similar performance from him ahead of the upcoming season.

The Scottish international is likely to be at the spear-head of Newcastle’s midfield and Benitez will be hoping he can provide the service that Aleksandar Mitrovic and new signing Dwight Gayle need to fire Newcastle back to the Premier League.

During the 2014/15 campaign, he managed to score 15 goals and contribute a further 17 assists, which is an extraordinary return. This is certainly a statement of intent from Newcastle and one that will have got the attention of the other 23 clubs.

The signing will keep the positive mood around the club after the disappointing news about Townsend. It is also likely to send a message to the squad that the club are committed to getting out of the Championship at the first attempt.

This is unlikely to be the last piece of business done by the club this month, with the club wanting to add a further three or four players before their season kicks off away to Fulham on the 5th August.

Ritchie had :

“It’s an unbelievable feeling to come to a football club like this.

“I loved it at Bournemouth – I had a fantastic time there and it had a huge impact on my career. But when a club like Newcastle comes calling, I couldn’t pass up this opportunity.

“It’s fantastic to be here and I’m really looking forward to the challenge of getting the Club back in the Premier League.”

Here is how Twitter reacted to Matt Ritchie joining Newcastle:

The majority saw the 26-year-old as an excellent coup for the Magpies…

http://twitter.com/_BenWills/status/748851903107330048

http://twitter.com/JakeWelch_88/status/748881324912545793

Love Matt Ritchie as a player. Great acquisition. Can't wait to see him in a toon strip this season ⚽️👏🏻👍🏻

— Alex Curran (@alexcurran_01)

Matt Ritchie is a pretty decent signing for Newcastle tho, happy with that one :-)

— Mark Henty (@MarkHenty)

Dwight Gayle & Matt Ritchie are superb signings for Newcastle

— Jamie Devlin (@JamieDevlin1988)

However, his arrival is likely to result in added pressure to succeed for the club…

http://twitter.com/maxjharrold/status/748881284441772032

Some believed the fee to be too high…

http://twitter.com/TheMasterBucks/status/748223863780106240

Ben Arfa signs for PSG on a free on the same day we sign Matt Ritchie for £12m. That crazy cow we call life just keeps on mooing.

— James Leather (@jimmyleather)

http://twitter.com/mark_mac18/status/748876337079877632

There were a few that couldn’t understand why Ritchie chose to drop back down to the Championsip…

http://twitter.com/Fieryflynn/status/748880150851383296

Why on earth has Matt Ritchie dropped down a division? Money isn't everything!

— Matthew Greer (@MattGreer1994)

Confused to why Matt Ritchie has signed for Newcastle 🤔

— Jack Simpson (@jack78_)

http://twitter.com/MLVN__/status/748879079684706304

But others that could…

All these supporters bewildered that Matt Ritchie would leave them for are 😂

— rob (@rob__fraser)

Despite being sad to see him go, Bournemouth fans wished him well…

Those 30 goals you contributed to in the Championship, the two promotions, those goals against Bolton and Sunderland. Thankyou Matt Ritchie.

— Peter (@AFCBPETER)

Sad to see Matt Ritchie leave . Best wishes, and hopefully we'll see you back in the Premier League soon.

— Andy W 🥌 (@hubbernation)

Gutted Matt Ritchie left us to go to . Good luck, Matt!

— Rima Armstrong (@reems84)