Newcastle United could be set to complete a controversial transfer in the near future, according to a key update from journalist Ben Jacobs.
Will Newcastle make January signings?
The Magpies are enjoying an exciting era with Eddie Howe at the helm currently, qualifying for the Champions League last season after finishing fourth in the Premier League. While the current campaign has got off to a disappointing start, it shouldn’t hide the fact that the club are still in a great position moving forward, with some top players on show at St Jamnes’ Park.
New signings are vital when it comes to ensuring that Newcastle keep going from strength to strength as a team, and in the summer transfer window, they brought in the likes of Sandro Tonali, Harvey Barnes and Tino Livramento to bolster their respective positions.
The Magpies will potentially be looking to sign more new players once the January transfer window rolls around and a new update suggests that they have an eye on one exciting individual.
Will Newcastle sign Chris Rigg?
Speaking to Give Me Sport, Jacobs claimed that Newcastle are still interested in signing Sunderland youngster Chris Rigg in January, in what would be a controversial capture given the rivalry between the two clubs, while Manchester United are also in the mix.
“It’s one to watch, for sure. Even though he is at Sunderland, a vast proportion of his family are all Newcastle fans as well. I think that one could be one to watch in January. Newcastle are concurrently planning for their future as well as the present. Garang Kuol is a good example and so is Harrison Ashby, who West Ham simply didn’t want to lose.
“Newcastle have made a few moves for young players in the market and beaten rivals to them. Rigg is seen as one of the top midfield prospects in the country and he is also only 16 years of age at the moment. He scored against Southampton last weekend. When he got that goal, he also became Sunderland’s youngest ever league scorer.
“But he needs minutes and time to develop as well, so the player side won’t want to rush into anything. However, there’s absolutely no doubt that Newcastle are keeping tabs, and I would say that is exactly the same for Manchester United as well.”
This would an incredibly notable piece of business by Newcastle, considering how strong the dislike is between themselves and Sunderland, and it would likely go down terribly at the Stadium of Light – and perhaps at Old Trafford too.
Rigg is a hugely exciting young talent who has already scored twice in five appearances for the Black Cats, despite still only being 16 years of age, making him their youngest-ever goalscorer in the EFL Cup. He is also a twp-cap England Under-17 international, and has been hailed as “wonderful” by Sunderland manager Tony Mowbray, who added that he “is doing really well and is a real positive for our football club”.
Acquiring young homegrown talent is always vital for Newcastle, ensuring they have a nucleus of English hopefuls within the squad, and if they manager to prise Rigg away from their biggest adversaries, it would feel sweet for so many reasons.