Like every membership, Newcastle United have seen plenty of younger abilities transfer on and fail to make the grade at first-team degree, with that transition from the youth ranks to the senior set-up not at all times clean.
A notable instance of a participant who did not construct on his early potential was Slovenian worldwide Haris Vuckic, the place nice issues had been anticipated of the then teenager following his signing from Domzale in January 2009.
Who’s Haris Vukic?
The suggestion on the time – in response to Sky Sports activities’ Pete O’Rourke – was that the teen was “considered one in every of Europe’s brightest abilities”, having even reportedly had a trial with Serie A giants AC Milan earlier than transferring to St. James’ Park.
Arguably representing one thing of a coup for the Magpies to have secured the ahead’s companies, Vuckic then made his debut for a League Cup match at the beginning of the 2009/10 marketing campaign, approaching as an alternative towards Huddersfield City.
Whereas the 6ft 3 participant steadily eased into the first-team squad, he continued to carry out for the Tynesiders’ Underneath-21 facet, finally scoring 14 objectives and offering 9 assists in simply 31 appearances at that degree.
The early influence led to the Ljubljana native being awarded a brand new deal in January 2011 on the age of 18, with supervisor Alan Pardew saying on the time of the contract extension:
“Haris is a participant with actual potential who we consider may have an thrilling future right here at Newcastle.“
Pardew would additionally go on to reward the rising star for his influence off the bench in a Carling Cup conflict towards Scunthorpe later that 12 months, with the Englishman giving a glowing evaluation of the midfielder’s expertise:
“Once I first arrived, I keep in mind the employees telling me, ‘Now we have a very good younger participant however he is injured in the intervening time. This tall, good, Slovenian man (Vuckic) walked previous me within the hall and smiled. Haris is a such a pleasant man.
“He is a stunning boy (whom) now we have excessive hopes for; he is bought nice method. Haris must study to cope with the bodily calls for of the Premier League however he is solely 19 and his potential is superb. He is bought a very good watch your self. It is a go that round 85% of Premier League footballers could not even see.”
Regardless of that potential, nonetheless, Vuckic would spend a lot of the following few years on mortgage at golf equipment additional down the soccer pyramid, with arguably the one notable success coming throughout his time at Scottish giants Rangers, the place he scored 9 objectives in simply 22 video games in all competitions within the second half of the 2014/15 season.
Because it turned out, the 12-cap maestro would find yourself making simply 19 appearances for his mother or father membership in complete as he did not earn a daily position below a succession of managers earlier than leaving in 2017, together with his solitary objective coming after a Europa League encounter with Atromitos 2012.
The place is Haris Vuckic now?
After being shipped out to Dutch facet FC Twente slightly below six years in the past, the one-time loanee from Cardiff Metropolis would initially wrestle to make his mark in his new residence, though he loved an excellent 2019/20 marketing campaign within the Eredivisie, after to have scored 11 factors. league objectives.
Nonetheless, that spectacular season has proved one thing of an anomaly slightly than the norm for Vuckic, with the struggling asset failing to attain after transferring to Spanish facet Actual Zaragoza the next season, earlier than spending the following 18 months or so on the Croatian facet , Rijeka.
That spell at what’s now his former employer noticed the towering asset file a decent tally of 16 objectives and 6 assists in simply 43 appearances in all competitions, though the 30-year-old has since determined to go away European soccer to attempt his luck in Thailand with Buriram United – scored six since switching again in December.
Having moved to such an obscure league maybe speaks volumes for the decline the previous highly-rated midfielder has endured since his early days at Newcastle, together with his profession maybe a case of merely wasted potential.
