Newcastle are now ‘unlikely’ to be able to complete move for £45m player in January

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Journalist Craig Hope is now claiming that Newcastle United look set to miss out on a key January target who they cannot afford to sign.

There’s not an awful lot of money available for Newcastle to spend this month despite the club needing to add reinforcements to improve their Premier League campaign.

In a recent Q and A, Hope revealed that a loan deal for Manchester City’s Kalvin Phillips is now looking unlikely to happen because of the fee that they are asking from Newcastle.

Newcastle’s January window starting to look bleak

If it is in fact true that Newcastle have been put off by the £7m or so loan fee that Man City are demanding for Phillips then it could be a very long window for supporters of the club.

Nobody was expecting fireworks this month and signing big-name players was certainly not on the cards, but it is so glaringly obvious that the team needs reinforcements, especially in midfield or they risk finishing in a very poor position in the league.

The team have already drifted towards mid table and while a European position is still within their grasp – still just five points off of West Ham in sixth – things change quickly in football and their upcoming fixtures don’t look to kind.

Newcastle could suddenly find themselves in the bottom half by the end of January and while they’ll hopefully have most of their players back from injury, they will have given themselves a huge mountain to climb.

In his Q and A, Hope said: “I’m told the deal is unlikely at present because of the numbers involved. Manchester City, at least before Christmas, had quoted a loan fee in excess of £7m with an obligation to buy.

“Newcastle would have to negotiate a deal more suited to them for the move to progress.
As one source said to me this week: ‘Newcastle would like to see Phillips done, but don’t hold your breath’.

“Of course, there remains a decent chance that a compromise will be met, but the word this week has been one of doubt.

“Brinkmanship? Almost certainly. Don’t be surprised to see movement towards the end of the window, despite the early pessimism.”

Phillips is exactly what Newcastle need right now

Newcastle’s biggest problems as of late, or at least one of them, has been the lack of defensive organisation that was so crucial in the first half of last season.

The team have been unable to play their usual back four for most of the season due to injuries and now having Nick Pope missing has been a huge blow, arguably the biggest absence in the team, so they need to fix that and quickly.

What could be a huge help is bringing in a defensive midfielder. Bruno Guimaraes is a very talented footballer and one of the best in the league, but he’s just not defensive minded.

Phillips was a very important player at Leeds in the role under Marcelo Bielsa and could be the perfect candidate for Newcastle, it’s just his lack of fitness that will be a big worry for Eddie Howe.