Report: Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa to Roma on loan

Defender Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa may be headed to AS Roma on loan, according to Gianluco Di Marzio, reporter for Sky Sports in Italy. The deal reportedly includes a €5 million option to buy. Yanga-Mbiwa has found himself on the outside looking in at Newcastle due to inconsistent play and his relatively high salary (£60,000/week, close to the upper limit of Mike Ashley's wage structure).

A loan deal makes little sense for Newcastle, since they are currently in the market for central defenders. If Mapou is not needed at St James' Park, when will he be? It is true that he has failed to live up to his billing on Tyneside, but that it has come to this is very disappointing indeed. MYM was expected to provide depth at the position, which has been thin since before Newcastle returned to the Premier League, and this puts the Toon in an even more precarious situation with just a day left in the transfer window.

Then again, if he wasn't going to play, at least they have found somebody else who is willing to pay his wage.