Tottenham Hotspur emerged as the winner in the race to sign sought-after midfielder Yves Bissouma on Friday. Several clubs - including Newcastle United - had been linked with the Mali international before Spurs landed their man for £25million.
A report in the Daily Mail from May claimed Brighton were “preparing” for the Magpies to make an offer after signing Dan Burn and the imminent arrival of Dan Ashworth as sporting director. However, it was Tottenham who took advantage of the 25-year-old only having one year left on his contract to take him to North London for a cut-price fee.
Holding midfield was a grey area for Newcastle for most of 2021-22. Once Isaac Hayden suffered a season-ending knee injury, Jonjo Shelvey was tasked with playing the deep-lying role.
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The England international did a commendable job considering his remit does not usually entail protecting the back four. Eddie Howe had Shelvey playing some of his best football in a black-and-white shirt, utilising the 30-year-old like a “quarterback” to springboard attacks rather than as a traditional, defensive-minded midfielder.
Despite that, signing an out-and-out enforcer - of a similar ilk to Bissouma - would be a game-changer for the Newcastle engine room. Last season, the Spurs midfielder made 50 interceptions, whereas Shelvey only managed 22. Tackles, too, is an area where Bissouma comes up trumps, with his 76 dwarfing the 30 his Toon counterpart put in.
In fact, Bissouma bettered Shelvey in almost every defensive stat last season - highlighting the impact a general-like midfielder could make at Newcastle. While Liverpool have Fabinho, Chelsea have Kante and Spurs now have Bissouma, the Magpies lack a player who can provide muscle in front of the backline.
Joelinton may have transformed into a midfield powerhouse in recent times but his talents have been unleashed as a “number eight” rather than a holding player. Signing a relentless battler to do the dirty work could allow the Brazilian and his compatriot Bruno Guimaraes to play with further attacking freedom.
The transfer rumour mill has linked Newcastle with Kalvin Phillips and Ibrahim Sangare, two players who fit the bill for what the Magpies need. Fielding a defensive-midfield general akin to the late Cheick Tiote would add an important dynamic to United’s midfield that it desperately lacked at times last season, a la Spurs, Leicester and Manchester City away.
Shelvey v Bissouma: Defensive stats (2021-22)
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