1. Maximiliano Gómez
The Valencia striker has 8 goals and 3 assists in 22 league appearances this season, which is a goal involvement every other game for the La Liga outfit. This is following up on a very good season for a struggling Celta Vigo side last year where he grabbed 13 goals and 5 assists in 35 league games, which is very similar to Salomón Rondón’s return last season for Newcastle, where the Venezuelan got himself 11 goals and a whopping 7 assists in 32 appearances during his best goal-scoring season in the Premier League.
Much like Rondón, Gómez has very good heading ability, can hold up the ball and is strong and bulky but has the skills in his locker.
At 23, turning 24 in August, Gómez fits Newcastle United’s ‘transfer policy’ of being 26 years or younger and has bags of potential. With the likes of West Ham and Manchester United keeping tabs on the Uruguay international in the past surely the 6ft 1” talisman has to be making a move to the Premier League at some point, and The Magpies would be the perfect destination considering their need for a prolific striker.
Valued at around £36 Million by Transfermarkt he would be money well spent in my opinion.
2. Franck Yannick Kessié
This one is a personal preference of mine. With the uncertainty around Matty Longstaff’s future and the possibility of not triggering Nabil Bentaleb’s £8.5 million option to buy, Kessié could well be the solution to United’s potential midfield problem this summer. Priced at around £22.5 million on Transfermarkt the Ivorian would be a great addition to the Toon Army’s midfield.
The AC Milan man is a strong, big framed player and is reminiscent of what Mohammed Diamé was like in the second half of the 2017/18 season, and at 23 years of age, he looks to have a bright future ahead of him. While Kessié is by no means a goal scorer he would give Hayden some good competition for a spot as a defensive midfielder, in an attempt to keep up the Englishman’s good form for Newcastle.
While this transfer would depend on outgoings, if we did need to bring in a midfielder, Kessié should be top of the list.
3. Diego Rossi
The 2020 MLS season has just started but Diego Rossi remains one of the top players in the league. There is always question marks over whether MLS players can cut it in the Premier League much like when Miguel Almirón signed for the Magpies in January 2018. Rossi could provide some much needed depth on the wing with Christian Atsu and Matt Ritchie our only back-ups.
The Uruguayan is only 22 years of age and valued at £10.8 million by Transfermarkt which is half the price of which Almirón was bought for. In the 2019 MLS season, the LAFC forward scored 16 goals and assisted 7 times in 34 games, which works out to be a goal involvement every 133 minutes. Impressive! In comparison, this is just under the numbers Almirón produced during Atlanta United’s MLS Cup-winning season in 2018. In that season the Paraguayan scored 12 times and assisted 13 in 32 appearances which is a goal or assist every 115 minutes or so.
While their stats are similar, unlike Almirón, Rossi has more of an eye for goal and could be another potential goal-scoring threat for United.
4. Jetro Willems
Some will see this as cheating I’m sure, but, Jetro was crucial to the first half of this season helping us pick up a point at home to Manchester City, and assisting his teammates twice during his 19 appearances for Newcastle. The stats are by no means the type to ‘blow your socks off’ but he improved the left-back position which is an area in which Newcastle have struggled in for a long time. He brought flair and pace and you have so say, since he’s been gone, we’ve lacked that from Danny Rose. Jetro has been back at the training ground a few times and stated he would like to extend his stay at St. James’ Park and I think most fans would agree, he would be more than welcome back on Tyneside.
5. Ryan Fraser
Bournemouth’s Ryan Fraser has certainly not impressed this season for The Cherries after turning down multiple contract offers from the South Coast side he looks set on wanting to move to a bigger club. This could well end up being Newcastle. The 26 year old Scotsman is out of contract in the summer and it’s the type of bargain that The Magpies would show some sort of interest in. While he only has 1 goal and 4 assists in the Premier League this season, which is by no means flattering, the former Ipswich Town loanee lives off of his success of the 2018/19 season where he bagged himself 7 goals from left midfield and set up his teammates 14 times, the only player to get more assists that season was Eden Hazard with 15.
So Fraser has shown he can be a top-class Premier League player and provide attacking threat for his team, surely Newcastle have to be all over this?