Newcastle United have reportedly made contact with a former Chelsea star whose sale has been green-lighted by his current club, according to reports.
Howe "disappointed" with Newcastle form as January approaches
Newcastle's need for defensive reinforcements was clear for all to see at the weekend as the Magpies were thumped 4-2 by Brentford in the Premier League. A frenetic start at the Gtech Community Stadium saw both teams find the net within the first 12 minutes, with Alexander Isak canceling out Bryan Mbeumo's opener.
The home side regained the lead when Yoane Wissa capitalized on an error by Harvey Barnes for his ninth goal in eight games, but the English winger redeemed himself soon after with a superb turn and finish to level. After the break, however, it was all Brentford, with goals from Nathan Collins and Kevin Schade sealing victory for the Bees and extending their unbeaten run at home this season to eight games. Speaking after the game, Howe highlighted his team's defensive woes.
Dan Burn and Eddie Howe for Newcastle
“Really frustrating," he said. “We are really disappointed with the manner of the goals we conceded. It is not even individual mistakes. There’s two or three actions I’m not happy with for each goal. We have to do better in those situations."
Magpies open talks for Barcelona defender
To help fix their issues at the back, Newcastle have now opened talks for Barcelona defender Andreas Christensen about a potential move to St. James' Park in January, according to CaughtOffside. The publication claims that Barca are open to selling the former Chelsea star, who joined them on a free transfer in July 2022 and is now in the final year of his contract.
The Catalan club don't want to lose him on a free next summer, so he could be made available for around £25 million after the New Year.
Andreas-Christensen-Manchester-United-Transfers
Christensen had been a key player for Barcelona since his arrival at the Camp Nou, but he's played just 26 minutes of football this season due to an achilles tendon injury, for which he underwent surgery in Sweden. He is expected to return at the end of January.
Former Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel once described Christensen as a clever defender after the Dane enjoyed a strong start to the 2021/22 season with the Blues.
“He’s a calm guy, very intelligent player, and sometimes you can get maybe a bit misled by judging him from his personality, because he is a hard defender and he is a guy who is not shy to have hard tackles and win challenges and step up in games,” said the German.
“He is very strong, very reliable and he has not reached his limits because at his age there is still room to improve. He can be a top defender for us in the next years and hopefully he will be because he comes from the academy."
Should Newcastle want to land the Dane, however, they face competition from Manchester United, who are understood to have already put in an early £12.5 million offer for the 28-year-old.