Eddie Howe hasn’t exactly had the transfer window to remember for Newcastle United this summer, failing to really improve the squad.
Tasting Champions League football last season is surely plenty of incentive for the squad to target another top-four finish in the Premier League this term, but the way things are going, this could be a challenge too far.
One of the biggest transfer sagas, certainly over the previous few weeks, was their pursuit of Marc Guehi.
Newcastle's pursuit of Marc Guehi
Crystal Palace placed a £70m price tag on Guehi’s head after a wonderful spell at the club which saw him called up to the England squad for Euro 2024.
The centre-back played in all but one of England’s games at the tournament and unsurprisingly, Palace have stood firm in their valuation for one of their biggest assets.
Accurate passes
45.3
Total duels won
3.6
Interceptions
0.7
Tackles
1.1
Clearances
3.5
Balls recovered
4.8
Possession lost
7.4
The Magpies pulled out of talks to sign Guehi due to this stance taken by Palace, despite having made three bids to lure the player north, with the latest one coming in at around £60m, which was rejected by the Eagles.
Howe will be disappointed not to sign one of the finest centre-backs in the Premier League, especially as he would have made a difference to the club’s starting XI, without a shadow of a doubt.
Is there a player Howe can rely on to make the step up from the academy, however? As Cathal Heffernan has already played for the first team in pre-season.
The player who can ease Guehi blow
Howe can call upon four centre-backs, yet both Sven Botman and Jamal Lascelles are injured at the moment. Could this see Heffernan perhaps getting an opportunity to make his senior debut for the Magpies in the coming weeks?
Having joined from AC Milan U18s last summer, the centre-back made 23 appearances for the U21s last season, scoring three times in the process.
Journalist Thomas Hammond hailed the youngster as “very exciting” upon his imminent arrival last year, and it looks as though the Irishman could be a prospect ready to make his way into the senior side sooner rather than later.
During his one game against senior opposition last term – featuring against Crewe in the EFL Trophy – the 19-year-old took 72 touches, recovered three balls, made three tackles and won 100% of his duels during the clash.
The club lost the game 2-1, but Heffernan stood out. Howe gave him a run out against Urawa Reds in a pre-season friendly at the end of July, with Heffernan coming in for the final 12 minutes of the game.
He hasn’t been in any of the three matchday squads so far this season, but if injury issues are still a problem in the next few months, it could be the ideal time to unleash the youngster in the starting XI.
Guehi would have been the ideal signing for Howe this summer. Could Heffernan develop into the next best thing?
In The Pipeline
Football FanCast's In the Pipeline series aims to uncover the very best youth players in world football.
