Newcastle in the mix to sign £30m “magician”

Newcastle United have resurrected their season since December, riding an extraordinary nine-match win streak that ended when Bournemouth won at St. James’ Park in the Premier League last weekend.

Fifth in the top flight and on the brink of reaching the Carabao Cup final, Eddie Howe’s side present an exciting package for any winter transfer targets.

The Magpies will need to put together quite a compelling proposal if they are to win one brewing transfer battle, with a host of top European outfits in the running for a British record holder.

Newcastle eyeing record man

According to The Mirror, Newcastle are one of the teams closely monitoring Jack Grealish’s situation, with the 29-year-old winger expected to leave Manchester City this year – and potentially this month.

Borussia Dortmund are keen, while Manchester United rather boldly view him as the perfect man to lift Ruben Amorim’s side’s season. Further details claim that the England international is also keen on moving to pastures new after an illustrious spell at the Etihad Stadium.

In 2021, Grealish broke the British transfer record when transferring from boyhood club Aston Villa to Manchester City for a jaw-dropping £100m fee, and though he’s won the lot under Pep Guardiola, his diminished role and influence over the past few years has left him on the fringes of the first-team squad, now believed to be worth around £30m by Football Transfers.

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Grealish remains one of English football’s silkiest players and biggest personalities, and he could bring a certain semblance of a one-time Newcastle maverick to Tyneside, should sporting director Paul Mitchell get the deal done.

Why Newcastle should sign Grealish

Grealish has never been an attacking midfielder defined by his numbers, but a return of 15 goals and 22 assists across 146 appearances leaves plenty to be desired all the same.

He was once regarded as a “magician,” as said by Ashley Cole, during his iconic Villan career, and given that the creative midfielder was earning comparisons to none other than Paul Gascoigne during this period, the argument for Newcastle to sign him is intensified.

As per FBref, Grealish ranks among the top 1% of positional peers over the past year for progressive carries and the top 8% for shot-creating actions per 90. It’s certainly Gazza-esque.

The famed attacking midfielder scored 24 goals across 104 United appearances as he cut his teeth in his homeland, emerging from the academy and going on to join Tottenham Hotspur for a British-record £2.2m deal in 1988 – there’s another similarity there, Grealish and Gazza both being British-record players at some stage of their respective careers.

Former City player Shaun Wright-Phillips also praised the wily maverick as “the closest thing you’re going to get to Paul Gascoigne,” so it’s clear to see that Howe would get hit mitts on a player of that mould.

Grealish is still one of the best dribblers in the world, with the flamboyant personality to match and potentially even provide the Toon with their next version of Gascoigne.

Howe employs a hard-working, industrious system, but Grealish has the flair and technical capacity to open up a new dimension and potentially restore his giddy old ways, emulating one of the greatest Lions to ever do it.

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