Burn, Targett, Ekitike: How deadline day flurry could see Newcastle lineup


While Newcastle fans will have expected their club to be busy this month, with three new signings confirmed already, few would have expected that four more could yet arrive on deadline day.

The Toon Army have their sights on a quadruple swoop to bolster their options across the pitch, and while sealing deals for all four may prove difficult, it's sure to be a busy day in the North East.

So who are the foursome still linked with a late switch and how and where will they fit in to Eddie Howe's new look side?

Dan Burn

Expected to make a move for a fee in the region of £12m from Brighton, Burn is a Geordie and lifelong Newcastle fan with the ability to operate at centre or left back. While the opportunity to deploy the 6'6" defender as a left wing-back - as Graham Potter did for much of the 2019/20 season in particular - might appeal given the delivery from Kieran Trippier on the opposite flank, Newcastle desperately need more solidity at the heart of their defence.

That remains Burn's natural position and his ability to play out from the back as a left sided centre back in a three or in a flat back four would surely be utilised. Since signing for the Seagulls, Burn has helped the club concede just 1.21 goals per game in his 68 starts in the Premier League, which is up to 1.37 without him in the starting XI.

Matt Targett

An opportunistic move late in the window, Newcastle are hoping to secure a loan deal for Aston Villa's left-back after the Midlands club signed Lucas Digne earlier in the window. That decision came off the back of a difficult first half of the season for the former Southampton defender, but he proved last season to be one of the more consistent and reliable full-backs in the league.

 

 

In fact, Targett was named Villa's Players' Player of the Season in the previous campaign, not only highlighting the quality of his performance levels but his popularity in the dressing room. He forged an excellent relationship with Jack Grealish and has the intelligence to link up with skillful players on the overlap, which would be a bonus given he may well operate behind Allan Saint-Maximin at Newcastle. A tackle completion rate of 63.4 per cent was enough to rank 10th of players to complete at least 50 in the Premier League last season, helping the 26-year-old to the fourth highest rating of all left-backs (6.90).


Jesse Lingard

 


The move of the four that would appear the least likely to happen, Newcastle are expected to make one last approach for Lingard on deadline day to see if Manchester United will lower their demands. The Red Devils previous stance was an upfront loan fee with the addition of an eye-watering £12m bonus if Newcastle beat the drop. That for a player who is out of contract in the summer was understandably seen by many as fanciful.

 

Burn, Targett, Ekitike: How deadline day flurry could see Newcastle lineup

 

 

However, the club know that Newcastle have the money to do a deal of that nature, and while it was rebuffed by the Magpies at the time they remain interested in coming to an agreement. Lingard was, of course, a huge success following his previous loan spell at West Ham this time last year, scoring nine times and registering four assists. Despite not starting a single league game this season he's netted twice for United this time around too. His threat on the counter was a huge weapon for the Hammers last season and would be exactly that for Newcastle. Indeed, he scored more goals on the break (3) than any other Premier League player despite making just 16 appearances. Meanwhile, his ability to play from a central position or from either flank would offer Howe a tactical flexibility in attack that he perhaps lacks at present.

Hugo Ekitike

The unknown entity of the foursome, to Premier League fans at least, Ekitike has had a breakthrough season with Stade Reims in Ligue 1. Having made just two substitute appearances last season the striker, now 19, has made 18 outings in France's top flight this season, scoring eight goals. That tally is even more impressive given seven of his appearances have again come as a substitute, and his ability to make an impact from the bench will have been a real draw for Newcastle.

 

 

Ekitike has, in fact, scored half of his league goals as a substitute this season, which is only bettered by Monaco marksman Wissam Ben Yedder (6) across Europe's top five leagues. His 34.8 per cent conversion rate is almost certainly unsustainable but does prove that the teenager is a natural finisher. That figure drops slightly to 31.8 per cent when excluding penalties, which ranks sixth of 155 players to have scored five or more goals in Europe's top five leagues this season. Whilst also capable of playing off the left, Ekitike would surely be a back up striker to the likes of Chris Wood and Callum Wilson initially but will be keen to prove his worth in the starting lineup and has a big part to play in the future of the club.

Burn, Targett, Ekitike: How deadline day flurry could see Newcastle lineup