Newcastle United’s midfield rebuild could take an ambitious turn after Matthias Jaissle identified a Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder as a potential target.
The player would be 22-year-old Cameroon international Carlos Baleba, who is considered someone the new Magpies manager admires. According to Transfermarkt, Baleba has an estimated market value of €55 million.
Newcastle remain desperately short of established options following the departures of Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali, and Wednesday’s
3-1 preseason defeat to Everton offered another reminder of how much work remains before the Premier League opener against Liverpool.
According to the Daily Mail’s Craig Hope, Baleba is among the midfielders Newcastle is considering as Jaissle pushes for further reinforcements, even though he’s more of the young variety than an established veteran.
“We understand that Brighton midfielder Carlos Baleba is among those the manager admires, and the club have him on their list of targets,” Hope reported. “Baleba would be an ambitious move, but Newcastle need to be just that if they are to give their new boss a squad that is able to compete in the top-flight this term. For right now, you would forecast a season-long struggle at the wrong end of the table.”
A move is not currently in any advanced stage, however, with the midfielder sidelined by an ankle injury. Hope nevertheless indicated that Newcastle’s interest could develop before the Sept. 1 deadline.
“It is not an active transfer – the 22-year-old currently has an ankle injury – but our sources say it is one to keep an eye on as the window progresses,” Hope reported.
Jaissle acknowledged those shortcomings after the Everton defeat without publicly identifying his transfer targets.
“I think you all see the matches. You’re also smart enough to see the needs in the squad,” Jaissle said. “We handle these things internally. We are aware of what we need. There’s still some time.”
Baleba would represent a considerably more ambitious addition than some of the experienced midfielders recently linked with Newcastle, including Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, who rejected a move to St. James’ Park, and although young, he’d come with Premier League experience after playing 112 games for Brighton throughout his time there, including 92 total EPL games.
Whether Newcastle turns admiration into an actual approach remains unclear, but Jaissle has now seemingly added one of the Premier League’s most highly regarded young midfielders to his rebuilding shortlist.
Would Baleba be worth a major investment, or would you rather try and land a more established, veteran midfielder? Share your thoughts below.
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