Whatever you think of Newcastle United as a whole this season, you have to be impressed with the rise of Lewis Hall.
The £28 million signing from Chelsea had to wait patiently for his chance to prove he was worth such a steep price, but once he won over Eddie Howe, there was no looking back.
Now, Hall is probably the first name on the teamsheet for the Magpies after a run of games in which he has consistently improved, showing his quality at both ends of the pitch after initially struggling defensively.
The 21-year-old has earned his place in Thomas Tuchel’s latest England squad, and it’s hardly surprising to see transfer stories sprouting up around the young star.
A report from TEAMtalk has suggested that Liverpool, Manchester United, and Arsenal are all showing an interest in Hall, but they go on to say that Newcastle have issued a strong hands-off warning.
That’s pretty much what we’d expect to hear, as we have no real cover for Hall in the squad as it is, so allowing him to leave would be crazy on that basis alone.
However, given that he has, at least in our view, cemented himself as one of the top stars at the club and one of THE best left-backs in the league, we should be doing everything we can to keep hold of him.
There are question marks over how serious this interest is from the Premier League trio. The story isn’t coming from a source we’d classify as being highly reliable in the first place, but we do expect this will be the first of many that will pop up between now and the end of the summer window.
They will likely vary wildly in terms of believability and veracity, but at least we’re starting off with one that suggests Newcastle are refusing to even entertain selling Hall.
Newcastle has Hall tied down until 2029 as things stand, and in all likelihood, he’s likely to be offered improved terms given how much he has developed of late.
The fact that Lewis Hall is a boyhood Newcastle fan is likely to come into play when he considers his future, too, so as things stand, it does feel like Newcastle are in a good place to resist any and all offers for the England star.