Highlights
- Newcastle have identified several players to sign at left-back.
- One of them is among the hottest young properties in the Premier League.
- He’d be an “amazing” alternative to Dan Burn in the Toon’s defence.
Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe wants to make one more signing for his outfit this summer and looks to have identified a rising Premier League star as a candidate.
Who could Newcastle sign this summer?
According to the Daily Mail’s Craig Hope, Chelsea starlet Lewis Hall is being considered by the Magpies as they explore defensive options this summer, with Marc Cucurella and Kieran Tierney also on the list.
The reporter stated in full: “Understand NUFC are exploring move for Chelsea’s Lewis Hall but are at limit of spend & must be “creative”. Arsenal’s Kieran Tierney & Chelsea’s Marc Cucurella others discussed at LB but nothing close. Joachim Andersen & Antonio Silva high on list at CB but v unlikely re cost.”
The 18-year-old impressed upon breaking into the Blues’ first team last season and could now make the move to Tyneside as Newcastle search for ‘creative’ ways to complete their summer spending while aligning with Financial Fair Play.
Hall has been widely expected to complete a loan move to Crystal Palace this summer but Howe’s side may well be in the driving seat to now hijack the deal.
How good is Lewis Hall?
It’s not quite clear if Newcastle would entertain a loan move, but if that is a viable option for the club, then it could work out tremendously.
The Magpies have signed Sandro Tonali, Harvey Barnes, Tino Livramento and Yankuba Minteh for approximately £132m this summer, and are approaching their limitations, though the lion’s share of what Howe and technical director Dan Ashworth would have wanted has been achieved.
Hall would complete the jigsaw, and while he is young, the Englishman has been heralded by Pat Nevin for his ‘incredibly impressive’ start to life on the major stage after winning Chelsea’s Academy Player of the Season award in 2021/22.
Last season, he recorded an average rating of 7.01 across his nine Premier League outings, making 1.7 key passes per game and completing 84% of his passes. Clearly, this is a player that loves to be on the front foot.
He would also provide cover and competition for Dan Burn on the left flank of the Toon backline, with the towering 6 foot 6 ace impressing in his makeshift role over the past year, naturally a central defender.
However, now that Newcastle have entered continental competition and could realistically compete for silverware across four different competitions, signing Hall would be a prudent move, especially following Jamal Lewis’ loan departure – with the option to buy – to Watford.
Burn joined United from Brighton & Hove Albion for £13m in January 2022 and has been instrumental in the club’s remarkable rise under Howe’s management, playing every match in the English top-flight last year as Newcastle finished fourth, boasting the joint-best defence in the division (alongside champions Manchester City).
The £55k-per-week titan is not the most mobile of defenders, something Hall on the flip side can indeed consider himself to be, and while Burn does rank among the top 5% of full-backs across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for clearances and the top 2% for aerials won per 90, as per FBref, he ranks among the bottom 7% for shot-creating actions, the bottom 4% for progressive carries and the bottom 13% for successful take-ons per 90.
The 31-year-old also only earned an average Sofascore rating of 6.78 last term, completing 0.4 key passes and 79% of his total passes despite being less ambitious than Hall in his ball-playing.
The divergence in style that Hall would bring to St. James’ Park would add a whole new dimension to Howe’s burgeoning system, with the teenage talent ranking among the top 5% for shot-creating actions, the top 16% for successful take-ons and the top 6% for touches in the attacking box per 90.
The youngster is also a solid and tenacious defensive option, sitting among the top 5% for tackles and the top 9% for interceptions per 90 – it is this age-belying roundedness to his craft that has left Newcastle so interested in stealing him from under Crystal Palace’s nose.
Once dubbed “amazing” by Chelsea teammate Callum Hudson-Odoi, Hall boasts the creativity and the progressive presence to improve Newcastle’s team, and he could be the low-risk signing to finish off the emphatic transfer activity this summer with aplomb.