Newcastle snap up West Ham defender Harrison Ashby
- Planet Sport writer
- 31 January 2023
West Ham have sold Scotland Under-21 defender Harrison Ashby to Newcastle for a reported fee of £3million.
The 21-year-old, who has made seven senior appearances for the Irons mostly in Europe, had failed to battle his way to becoming a first-team regular behind fellow right-backs behind Ben Johnson, Vladimir Coufal and the versatile Thilo Kehrer.
Ashby's contract was due to expire in six months and West Ham had been unsuccessful in getting him to sign a new deal.
"I could not be happier. I can't get the smile off my face and it's a proud day for me and my family," Ashby told nufc.co.uk.
"I'm buzzing to come to the game tonight, to meet the fans and to get a taste of the atmosphere. I wouldn't be here today without West Ham, so I thank all the coaches that I had from growing up to now, but I'm delighted to be here."
Newcastle manager Eddie Howe said they had signed the defender, who is the son of former Watford, Brentford and Gillingham defender Barry Ashby, with a long-term view.
"Harrison is a very talented young player with a lot of potential so we are delighted to sign him and are are looking forward to working with him in this exciting new chapter of his career," he said.