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As Newcastle’s takeover talks rumble on, the extent to which Rafa Benitez will be financially backed in January remains unclear and, with Atlanta United slapping a £30m price tag on top target Miguel Almiron’s head, it seems smart to come up with a contingency plan should Mike Ashley still be in the hot seat come the new year.
What’s the word?
Newcastle owner Ashley is notorious for his tight-pocketed approach to transfer dealings and his lack of support has led to outcry from the St James Park faithful this season in particular, with angry chants directed at the 54-year-old commonplace at their games.
The Tyneside club are in desperate need of a new number 10 who can a bit of pace, creation and (crucially) flair to their ranks and, while Almiron fits the bill perfectly, the fee which he looks likely to command will surely be a huge obstacle for Benitez and co.
Meanwhile, with Jose Mourinho’s sacking surely everyone’s favourite topic of discussion this week, question marks over the future of many of the Red Devils squad have arisen and the Magpies should look to capitalise on the disarray at Old Trafford by pinching one of their exciting young prospects in Andreas Pereira.
What can Pereira bring?
The 22-year-old has hardly featured for United since his move to Manchester from PSV in 2012 as he has made only 19 appearances for the first team – youth development has hardly been a focus for the 14-time league winners, especially since Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure, as they splash record-breaking millions on ready-made stars such as Paul Pogba and Romelu Lukaku.
Adept all across the midfield, the Brazilian could be a huge asset for Newcastle as they push for Premier League survival and his technical ability and invention can only be matched by Kenedy. He would also be a huge upgrade on the lacklustre Ayoze Perez, who does not offer enough as a foil for Salomon Rondon.
Transfermarkt values the Belgium-born maestro at just £7.2m and could be available for little more than that figure as United look to pick up the pieces from a disastrous campaign so far.
Check out the video above for Emma Conybeare’s rundown of which clubs need what in the January transfer window…