Barcelona darling with amazing stats among two strong options for Newcastle
Newcastle are in the market for a new central midfielder to strengthen the squad after being turned down by Manuel Locatelli.
Eddie Howe is back in the hunt for a new midfielder in the January transfer window after target Locatelli turned down a move to Newcastle, sources told Football Insider on 6 October.
The Italian cited a lack of guaranteed minutes as a reason not to reunite with former teammate Sandro Tonali ahead of the World Cup next summer.
The rebuke has put the club back to square one in their pursuit of a midfielder, although Newcastle maintain their interest in Man United’s Kobbie Mainoo.
One injury to Bruno Guimaraes, Joelinton or Tonali could be catastrophic for the Magpies considering the upcoming congested winter period as Football Insider offers some exciting alternatives, courtesy of data from FBRef from the 2024-25 season.
Marten de Roon – Atalanta
The Toon do not need to look too far as they could stick in the Serie A and bring in veteran midfielder Marten de Roon.
The Netherlands international has entered the final year of his contract and could be snapped up on a cut-price deal to appease Howe’s midfield concerns.
At 34-years-old, the Atalanta warrior made 50 appearances in all competitions last season, racking up nine goal involvements.
He is on-par with his Italian top-flight competitor Locatelli, averaging 1.38 interceptions per-90 which is more than the Juventus man’s 0.73.
Moreover, his 1.09 progressive carries per-90 marginally exceeds the Italian’s 1.05, demonstrating his ability to get the team up the pitch, ideal for Howe’s transition-based system.
Marc Casado – Barcelona
The Barcelona academy graduate is quietly making a name for himself in Spain after a breakout season in 2024-25.
The 22-year-old made 36 appearances in all competitions, scoring once and assisting on six separate occasions, primarily operating as a deep-lying midfielder.
When compared to Locatelli domestically, Newcastle should be encouraged by his dominant stats that would work perfectly in Howe’s aggressive midfield system.
Marc Casado recovered the ball 5.03 times per-90, surpassing the Italian’s 4.49 recoveries per-90 which demonstrates his splendid work rate.
Moreover, the Spaniard’s 1.23 interceptions per-90 highlight his superb reading of the game to cut out counter-attacks, higher than Locatelli’s 0.73.
The Catalan maestro also registered a higher pass completion rate (89.3 per cent) than the Juventus anchor (87.8 per cent), highlighting his pinpoint accuracy with the ball at his feet.