Newcastle United are reportedly interested in signing Tyrone Mings from Aston Villa this summer.
That’s according to the Mirror, who claim the centre-back is valued at £35million. They claim Eddie Howe wants to bring him to St James’ Park, and he’s a player the Toon boss knows well.
Howe has already signed Mings before, adding him to his Bournemouth squad in 2015 for £8million.
While he wasn’t up to much at Bournemouth, Mings has forged out a brilliant career since moving to Villa Park.
He’s the captain there, and his form in the West Midlands has won him 17 England caps.
Mings hasn’t enjoyed his last two trips to Newcastle amid reported interest
Mings captained Aston Villa to victory against Newcastle earlier in the season, but didn’t have as much joy in the return fixture.
Howe’s side beat Villa 1-0 at St James’ Park in February, with Kieran Trippier scoring the winner from a free kick. The performance angered Villa boss Steven Gerrard, who hit out at his team in his post-match interview.
Mings spent the afternoon fighting a losing battle with Dan Burn, and the game signalled the second time in 12 months that he had struggled at St James’ Park.
The two sides drew 1-1 in March 2021, back when Steve Bruce was scrapping for points and fans still weren’t allowed to attend games.
While right now Joelinton is our heroic midfielder, back then he was still a faltering striker. However, he was excellent on that night against Villa, and gave Mings a torrid time.
The Brazilian bullied Mings, which was hard to believe at the time given Joelinton’s lack of form in black and white.
Villa could replace Mings with Joe Gomez
The Mirror’s report adds that Gerrard isn’t ‘desperate’ to sell Mings. However, he could be moved on if it allows Aston Villa to sign out of favour Liverpool star Joe Gomez.
If that’s the case, perhaps Newcastle are after the wrong centre-back. Gomez would be a much better option.
While Mings is a good player and a leader at the back, he doesn’t feel like a massive improvement on what Howe already has.
The 29-year-old plays as the left-sided centre-back, which is currently Burn’s position at Newcastle. Is Mings better than our local hero? Not for me.
At £35million, this is a transfer the Magpies should steer well clear of.
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