Janmaat joins as Debuchy departs!

Going Dutch with Daryl... Newcastle have completed the signing of former Feyenoord defender Daryl Janmaat.

24-year-old Janmaat joins the United having put pen to paper on a six-year-deal for a fee believed to be around £5 million. He becomes our sixth signing of the summer to date following the arrivals of Ayoze Perez, Jack Colback, Siem de Jong, Remy Cabella and Emmanuel Riviere.

He was a regular for his previous club Feyenoord making a total of 74 appearances for the Dutch club, scoring five goals along the way. He also chipped in with seven assists last season but couldn’t do enough to help his team win the league, losing out to Siem De Jong’s Ajax in the end.

His good form earned him a call up to the Netherlands World Cup squad where he started two group games and put in a few impressive performances before being dropped for the knockout rounds. He did make three very good substitute appearances in the latter rounds and even set up the third goal in Netherlands' final game against Brazil.

This is what he had to say in his first interview as a Newcastle player:

"Newcastle is a fantastic club, with a big history and a great stadium. I have also been told all about how great the fans are," said Janmaat.

He added: "This is the perfect move for me, and I am really looking forward to being with the team and getting started here at Newcastle. I think we are going to have a great season."

This is Mr Pardew’s take on the signing:

"We are delighted to bring Daryl to the Club. He is the perfect example of a modern full-back; someone who is good defensively but offers a real threat going forward as well."

Adding: "Daryl had an excellent World Cup and we are looking forward to him continuing that form for Newcastle."

Here is a quick YouTube video of Janmaat in action. Just to whet your appetite a little...

Another signing done, the squad is shaping up nicely and the atmosphere around the club has improved dramatically in the last few days though there are still grumbles here and there. Is he an improvement on Mathieu Debuchy? Well that is up for debate and I’m sure debate it we will but I’m just glad we have got him in before letting Debuchy join Arsenal.

What are your thoughts on Janmaat and the summer transfers in general? Is letting Debuchy go for a fee in the region of £10m and replacing him with a player at half the price a good piece of business?