Newcastle United failed in their pursuit of a new defender this summer.
Indeed, Crystal Palace and England star Marc Guehi was the big target at Newcastle over the course of the transfer window but proved out of reach, much to the frustration of sporting director Paul Mitchell.
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It leaves Eddie Howe light on defensive numbers, there’s little doubt about that. With Sven Botman and Jamaal Lascelles facing months out of action following serious knee injuries, Howe is certainly not blessed with options at centre-back.
Lloyd Kelly of course arrived over the course of the summer but Newcastle are lower on resources at the back than they were even last season, with Paul Dummett having left too.
Still, internal solutions must be found.
Dan Burn has moved across to a central position, and the same can be said of Emil Krafth.
Howe has hailed the Sweden international as “outstanding” and was full of praise for his performance against Southampton, with Krafth having had to replace Fabian Schar following his controversial red card.
Though a full-back by trade, Howe believes the Sweden star could be set for a permanent stint at centre-back.
Newcastle United’s Emil Krafth and Jacob Murphy celebrate after the Premier League match between Newcastle United FC and Southampton FC at St James…
Photo by Alex Dodd – CameraSport via Getty Images
Speaking ahead of Sunday’s trip to Wolves, Howe said of Krafth (via The Chronicle): “Emil has done an outstanding job, I can’t compliment him enough especially when you consider that it is not his first position. He’s been playing centre-half now for a while, we started that work with him at the back end of last season when we saw that as a position he could play in and play very well.
“He did that against Manchester United last year in the Carabao Cup, he was magnificent that night. It’s an area that we see Emil developing more in as his career goes on with us but having that dual role is key – similar to the qualities Lloyd Kelly has in terms of playing both positions.”
Emil Krafth may lose his starting place at Newcastle
However, as much as Howe appears to rate Krafth, it seems the defender may soon lose his starting berth.
Schar is available for the game at Wolves on Sunday following his suspension and Krafth has not been spotted in training.
With that in mind and Burn proving so crucial this season, it would not be much of a surprise to see the pair establish themselves as the first choice from here.
Krafth does provide some capable back-up and perhaps underlines his value in the squad with such versatility.
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