Newcastle’s riches means that they could blow teams out of the water with wages when it comes to pre-contracts.
Newcastle’s outstanding 4-1 win over Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League was the result of the round across the board in Europe – and it will have swung even more attention their way after a stellar campaign last season.
With money awash in the Premier League, England’s top-flight is the place to be when it comes to wages – and Newcastle are one of the biggest pulls when it comes to financial offers. The Magpies have attracted big-name players such as Alexander Isak, Sandro Tonali, Bruno Guimaraes and more since their takeover in October 2021 – and with European competition on offer, it’s even more of a reason to head to Tyneside at the moment. And, with that in mind, we look at five players who could be ideal signings for Eddie Howe with their contracts up in the summer as clubs can offer ‘pre-contracts’ as early as January.
Sean Longstaff, Joelinton and Joe Willock are all top players in their own rights, but Rabiot has been there and done it all.
A World Cup with France, multiple trophies with Paris Saint-Germain and a Serie A with Juventus, alongside 39 appearances for his country and 68 appearances at European level – it’s quite the CV that would only suit Newcastle going forward if they are to get over the top five line.
Similar to Rabiot, Zielinski offers experience in the midfield contingent but with more of an attacking approach.
Having been at Napoli for the last eight seasons, Zielinski has made 338 appearances for the Gli Azzurri, scoring 50 goals and winning two trophies at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium.
The Pole also has 83 caps for Poland, including a goal at the World Cup – and he could offer a like-for-like option to replace multiple midfielders that are already in the St. James’ ranks for fresh legs throughout the campaign.
This would be an outstanding capture. The younger brother of fellow Athletic Bilbao player Inaki, Nico is one of the world’s best young wingers coming through the ranks, and with his contract up in the summer, many of the world’s biggest clubs will be in for his signature.
But with Newcastle clearly adopting a young approach in terms of their new signings in their attacking ranks such as Alexander Isak, Anthony Gordon and other youth signings such as Garang Kuol and Yankuba Minteh, Williams would be the ideal candidate to boost their ranks out wide.
A quartet of Williams, Gordon, Almiron and Harvey Barnes would be something to marvel at.
Presnel Kimpembe
Of all of the major signings you would expect Newcastle to make over the next 12 months, a centre-back is most likely high up on their priority list.
Fabian Schar and Sven Botman are two outstanding centre-backs, but with Jamaal Lascelles as their back-up, more is needed if the Magpies are to challenge near the top consistently.
Kimpembe offers a wealth of experience at both international and club level. Similar to Rabiot, the 28-year-old has featured over 236 times for the French club, winning 28 caps and most importantly, he predominantly left-sided – with left-footed centre-backs of genuine quality being some of the rarest profiles to capture at the top of the game.
Guido Rodriguez
As more of an ‘enforcer’ type, Rodriguez would be an ideal capture for Newcastle in their midfield when it comes to facing strong counter-attacking teams.
Sandro Tonali and Bruno Guimaraes are both exceptional on the ball and thus further up the field, they are able to excel.
But they aren’t in the same league as Rodri, Fabinho and Casemiro have been for other English clubs in the past few years when it comes to ball recovery and steeliness – and you could almost add Declan Rice to that conversation.
With Rodriguez having been a mainstay in Real Betis and Argentina’s midfield ranks for the past four years, he’s proved his worth for the Verdiblancos and would be the ideal addition for competition on Tyneside.
Leave a Reply