Newell admits he turned down Rangers offer
Hibs midfielder Joe Newell has revealed how he turned down an early move to Scottish football at the start of his career – with Rangers.
The 31-year-old is now one of the Easter Road club’s most experienced players, having been in Leith since a 2019 switch from Rotherham United. He will likely carry an extra mantle of responsibility next season when club legends and long-serving stalwarts Paul Hanlon and Lewis Stevenson depart.
Newell has made 185 appearances for Hibs, with 10 goals and 34 assists. He is not a man of many clubs, having had time with Birmingham City in his youth days before starting his professional career with Peterborough United. Newell made over 100 appearances for the EFL club before moving to Rotherham.
It could have been so different though for the playmaker, had he taken up the offer of a contract from Rangers. That would have been a far more lucrative move in the early stages of his career but being closer to home had him opting for Peterborough.
Newell has lifted the lid on why he chose not to make the early move north with Rangers, eventually completing a Scottish switch almost five years ago. He told Talking Transitions podcast: “It was either Rangers or Peterborough.
“They both offered.
Rangers offered their standard youth team wage. So, I signed for Peterborough because it was an hour and a half down the road. I was on £55 a week at Peterborough, and Rangers had offered me like £300 per week.
“At 16, I never even got pocket money as a kid so that was f ***** g ridiculous."
Elsewhere, former Hibs favourite Jason Cummings has declared his future will be with Mohun Bagan as he looks ahead to another season with the Indian side.
Cummings has spent this season with the Indian Super League club, where he has claimed the Super League Shield. His side lost out in the ISL final, with his goal not enough to prevent a 3-1 defeat against Mumbai City.
He will also play in the Asian equivalent of the Champions League next season after a maiden campaign with 19 goals in 37 matches, following a lucrative move to Kolkata from A-League club Central Coast Mariners.