Newcastle were linked with Carl Rushworth but signed two other goalkeepers in the summer instead
Coventry City goalkeeper Carl Rushworth (left) and Lukas Hornicek of Newcastle United
Coventry City goalkeeper Carl Rushworth (left) and Newcastle United's Lukas Hornicek
Newcastle United have made a promising start to life under Matthias Jaissle and at the heart of it has been the excellent start to life on Tyneside new goalkeeper Lukas Hornicek has made.
The Czechia international arrived from Braga in the summer in a £25.7million deal and has made the transition to life in the Premier League seamlessly.
The 24-year-old has made the second most saves of any goalkeeper in the Premier League and has the best goals prevented rate in the division, too. His profile this season has drawn comparisons to Man City's Gianluigi Donnarumma and Real Madrid's Thibaut Courtois, according to DataMB's player similarity generator tool.
But he has also added an extra dimension with the ball at his feet, too, which was the major criticism levelled at Nick Pope in an otherwise excellent four years the England international spent as the Magpies' number one goalkeeper.
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"[He has done] An amazing job so far," Jaissle told Chronicle Live when asked about Hornicek's impact last month. "[An] Amazing signing, a young lad as well and not easy coming into the Premier League and performing already on a high level and dealing with the pressure. As a keeper it is something else as well. So we are really pleased and we hope can continue to progress in the same way."
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Hornicek has returned to Tyneside after a successful international break on a personal level, too, after winning out in the battle with Tottenham's Antonin Kinsky and PSV's Matej Kovar to become his country's number one goalkeeper.
He will head into Monday's trip to Coventry full of confidence in a game which will give Newcastle fans a direct comparison with another goalkeeper they were linked with over the summer.
Former England under-21 international goalkeeper Carl Rushworth was among the names linked with a move to Newcastle as they scoured options in their search of signing a new goalkeeper.
The 25-year-old spent the season on loan at Coventry in the Championship from Brighton and Hove Albion and helped the Sky Blues win the league title and promotion to the Premier League, with his performances seeing him named in the Championship team of the season.
He returned to Brighton in the summer knowing it would be a tough ask to usurp Bart Verbruggen from the number one spot and was ready to move on in pursuit of first team football.
Newcastle were credited with an interest but a move never materialised as they focused efforts on signing Hornicek, as well as France under-21 international goalkeeper Ewen Jaouen.
Meanwhile, Rushworth focused his efforts on returning to Coventry on a permanent basis and Frank Lampard's side made their move, securing his return for £22million.
"It was a no-brainer," Rushworth told BBC Coventry and Warwickshire Sport. "Straight away as soon as the season finished, I knew I wanted to be back here.
"I knew it was time for me to go on a permanent and have a new home, and I wanted to be my own club's number one, so then to have the opportunity here at Coventry, it was such an easy decision, and I made it clear to Brighton straight away I didn't want to be anywhere else."
Rushworth had a baptism of fire in the top flight as he had a difficult evening in their opening day defeat to Arsenal before shipping five goals to Brighton in a bruising home defeat.
But he kept his first Premier League clean sheet in their 1-0 win at Nottingham Forest last time out and he is slowly settling into life in the top flight.
"The short answer is that he was brilliant for Coventry during his season-long loan last term when he kept 17 clean sheets and was named in the division’s team of the year," Andy Turner, Coventry City reporter for the Coventry Telegraph, told Chronicle Live.
"He’s a talented goalkeeper with all the attributes to make it to the very top, with Frank Lampard firmly believing he’s heading for international honours with England.
"He’s also a great character who fell in love with the football club where he’s found his home after years of loan moves to aid his development. In terms of how he’s done so far, let’s say he’s settling in and kept his first clean sheet against Forest in the last match."
Newcastle will get to see that talent first hand on Monday when they hope Hornicek will win out in the battle of the goalkeepers.