Pundit is 'sure' Digne wants to sign for Newcastle after 'great' update on talks
A Newcastle swoop for Lucas Digne would be a "great start" for the "new era" at St James' Park, according to Alan Hutton.
The former Scotland defender, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, claimed the experienced 28-year-old would be a "brilliant" capture.
According to the Daily Mail (20 December), Everton defender Digne is being discussed by Newcastle chiefs ahead of a potential deal in January.
The 43-time France international is on the fringes at Everton after a fall-out with Toffees boss Rafa Benitez.
Newcastle are light at left-back after Northern Ireland defender Jamal Lewis suffered a suspected hamstring injury last week.
Hutton suggested the former Barcelona left-back would be receptive to a potential Magpies switch.
“Signing Digne would be a great start for that new era,” he told Football Insider's Ewan Kingsbury.
“Defensively is where a lot of Newcastle’s problems lie. They’ve played makeshift full-backs often this season – Matt Ritchie has played in there, for example.
“To have someone in there who knows the Premier League and has played an awful lot of games at a high level would be brilliant. He’d really fit the bill.
“If things have deteriorated with Rafa Benitez at Everton and he’s not going to be playing – as a player, you won’t be happy with that.
“It’s a risk because they could go down this season, but the bigger picture is the project they are building in the background – I’m sure he wants to sign for Newcastle and be a part of that.”
Newcastle sit 19th in the league table and have conceded the most goals in the top flight (41).
Digne signed for Everton in 2018 for a reported £18million and has made 113 Premier League appearances.