Newcastle United They will be hoping their recent excellent form ensures they have the best possible chance of finishing in the top four Premier League.
After he missed UEFA Champions League By ending the league during the 2023/24 season, Eddie Howe I wouldn't want that to happen again, especially after getting a taste of what Europe's premier club competition has to offer.
In order to achieve this, Howe will need to bolster his squad with some reinforcements this month.
One priority area is the attack department. Alexander Isaac Enjoying a great campaign so far, He scored 17 goals And having obtained five assists at the time of writing this report in all competitions.
However, if he suffers an injury, Howe will not have many options to fall back on, suggesting that another striker is necessary.
Elsewhere, signing a defender or two would also be a huge boost to Howe's chances of leading the club back to the promised land of the Champions League.
Several goals have been identified recently. The question is, will any of them secure a move to St James' Park before the transfer window closes in a fortnight?
Newcastle United January transfer goals
In recent days, Newcastle Send scouts to watch Parma goalkeeper Zion Suzuki regarding a move to bring him to the North East this month.
In addition, Toon sent his chief scout, Steve Nixon To watch Brentford winger Brian Mbeumo in action against Manchester City during the 2-2 draw in midweek.
The Bees are demanding a fee of around £50m for any club to secure his signature, but they will not be entertaining offers this month.
With Lloyd Kelly emerging as Key transfer target For Jose Mourinho's Fenerbahce side recently, could Howe benefit from a player who only joined the club last summer? Make a solid profit in the process.
|
Newcastle's previous five January signings |
||
|---|---|---|
|
player |
The club signed from |
year |
|
Anthony Gordon |
Everton |
2023 |
|
Harrison Ashby |
West Ham |
2023 |
|
Bruno Guimarães |
Leon |
2022 |
|
Chris Wood |
Burnley |
2022 |
|
Dan Burns |
Brighton |
2022 |
If so, he will need to add another centre-back to his squad before the end of the window. Could he turn to Portugal to find the perfect replacement?
Newcastle is looking for a Sporting defender
Ousmane Diomande is a familiar name to Newcastle fans. The club tried to sign a centre-back during the summer transfer period, but… His release clause amounts to £67 million It proved to be too much, especially with the PSR rules.
However, could they be lucky a second time? According to Portuguese outlet A Bola (via FlashScores), the Magpies sent scouts to monitor his performances for Sporting recently.
Howe could face plenty of competition for the Ivorian international, with Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United all linked with a move.
Despite his high release clause, A.J The offer ranges between 50-60 million euros (£42m – £50m) could be accepted by the Portuguese side, either now or during the summer transfer window.
Howe may have to offload a player or two in order to move to Diomande, but given how much he likes Sporting, this could be money well spent indeed.
Ousmane Diomande's season in numbers with Sporting Lisbon
The 21-year-old defender He made a total of 25 appearances For his club this season, he missed only one league match.
In the first division this season, Diomandi Has a success rate of 94%while he also averaged 1.1 tackles and 1.2 interceptions and won 64% of the total duels he played per match, demonstrating his impressive defensive abilities and passing skill.
Diomande also loses possession only 4.7 times per game for the club domestically, demonstrating his ability to keep the ball for his team under pressure.
Adding this kind of quality to Newcastle's squad would undoubtedly boost their chances of a top-four finish, there's no doubt about it.
Diomandy has yet to reach his peak, already showing the qualities of a world-class centre-back, and could shine in the Premier League for the Magpies.
Not only that, but his qualities are somewhat similar to the Arsenal defender who has arguably been one of the best midfielders in the Premier League over the past two seasons – William Saliba.
Ousmane Diomandi could be Howe's Saliba
The Frenchman has been a rock for Arsenal over the years. This season in the Premier League, he has He won 61% of his total ground duels Besides losing possession only 5.1 times on average.
Analyst Ben Mattinson He praised Diomande last year After being linked with moves to Arsenal and Chelsea, he said: “As much of a no-brainer as possible. There are other CBs I like but like many I like Diomande.
“The thing I like about Diomande is that in many ways he is a mix between Gabriel and Saliba. If you let him learn from them, he could become a monster in no time.
According to FBref, Saliba is The third most comparable player against the Ivorian in the Champions League this season, proving that the duo are similar in terms of attributes and playing style.
In fact, the husband has too Similar statistics were recorded Across a range of metrics in Europe's premier club competition this season, including pass completion percentage (95% vs. 93%), clearances (13 vs. 20), touches in the defensive third (145 vs. 181), percentage of aerial duels completed. Winning it (75% vs. 81.8%) and holding (239 vs. 216).
These statistics clearly show that both players play the game the same way. Diomande is already showing the qualities that could see him rise to the upper echelons of the game.
A move to Newcastle would give him a platform to showcase this talent in the Premier League and could be one of the final pieces of Howe's jigsaw as he seeks a return to Europe for next season.
A lot will depend on how much the manager has to spend this month, but these are the type of transfers the club needs to make in order to progress to the next level.
The next few weeks could be interesting indeed.
