Now we’re talking. At last Geordie juices are flowing at the prospect of Newcastle United making a major breakthrough in the transfer market. Fans have craved a big name with a big reputation and Marc Guehi, who made such an impact with England at the Euros, fits the bill perfectly.
United are said to have opened negotiations with Crystal Palace for Guehi even though it would take a fee well north of £60m to nail the stylish central defender which would represent a club record outlay of course. There is still much work to be done to drag the deal over the line and United are harbouring a fear that other clubs may attempt to highjack Guehi now that Magpie interest has been flushed out into the public domain.
While it may be in the interest of others, especially Palace, to have an auction it is certainly not in the interests of Newcastle and this is where the greatest danger to a successful conclusion lies. The Eagles have to pass on 20 per cent to his previous club Chelsea which will be taken into account.
Guehi played in six of England’s games at the Euros he was that good missing only the quarter-final victory over Switzerland through suspension ironically brought about by a short pass from Kieran Trippier dropping him in it. Perhaps Geordies were expecting any big splash to be for a right winger rather than a central defender but any opportunity to land a player of Guehi’s abitilty and promise is too good to pass up.
Fabian Schar has every right to feel he can fight for his place having enjoyed such a stellar year last time round but he is 33 years old in December whereas Guehi is 24. While United scored a barrowload of goals last season defence was a major problem and if that can be shored up satisfactorily then United will have a better platform to build success.
Newcastle’s other deal on the boil at the moment is at the opposite end of the scale. We will welcome Will Osula to our cathedral on the hill because Newcastle have got to have a future as well as a present. A 20-year-old striker with oodles of potential can cover today and star tomorrow.
He fits the identikit picture of a centre-forward that I have been banging on about for some while. United were never going to buy the finished article because that costs between £60m and £100m and whoever they got was going to sit in a queue behind Alexander Isak. That means buying within cost – either a young player for around £10m to £15m, which is our man, or a much older player with a history that puts him into the £25m category.
When Newcastle couldn’t get injury prone Dominic Calvert-Lewin for that amount of money they went to the other end of the market and plumped for a promising youngster just as they tried to do a couple of seasons back with Hugo Ekitike. Osula is a Danish Under 21 international who was making his way at Sheffield United. Hardly the big name recruit fans have craved nor a kid bursting with goals as a 21-year-old Malcolm Macdonald was at Luton when United bought him all those years ago. However let us give our newcomer space to breathe.
Nevertheless United need to step on the gas and bring in a ready-made diamond. So far this window they have completed a deal for Lewis Hall who has been here a year already, signed Lloyd Kelly on a free transfer, bought a goalkeeper Obysseas Vlachodimos who was an understudy at Nottingham Forest, backed him up with a 37-year-old also on a free John Ruddy, and lined up a 20-year-old cover striker. With total respect to all those new arrivals that doesn’t look like a roster of summer activity to zoom in on the Champions League.
Osula will presumably officially be third choice striker behind Isak and Callum Wilson, who is probably unsaleable right now with yet another injury, but for large chunks of the season he will be elevated to No 2 when Callum is recovering.
I wish every single newcomer well because their success would greatly help our club but please let us now go for the jugular. Guehi would do nicely of course. Dare we dream?
Aston Villa, who did what we did a year earlier in making the Champions League out of nowhere, have been super active while United have been extremely quiet both in selling and buying. Villa have recruited eight players including Amadou Onana at £50m, Ian Maatsen £37.5m, and Ross Barkley £5m while getting rid of five with €60m raked in for Moussa Diaby from the Saudis and another €51.5m for Douglas Luiz from Juventus. Yet most would see Newcastle and Villa as roughly on a par – historically big clubs with little recent pedigree both trying to scatter the Super Six.
Right now the Villans look as if they are taking a stride further up the ladder of progress from where the Magpies currently find themselves. However it is not over till the fat lady clears her throat and hits the top note at the beginning of September.
