Newcastle United are stepping up their efforts to bring new faces to the club this summer, and have taken a fresh look at a Championship star who has caught Eddie Howe’s eye.
With the Premier League season less than two weeks away, a lot of work still needs to be done in the summer transfer window.
Newcastle United have already confirmed the signings of Anthony Elanga and Aaron Ramsdale, but several other positions and situations need to be worked on before the window closes on September 1.
Alexander Isak’s future at Newcastle is still up in the air. The Swede returned to training on Monday and is expected to have crunch talks with Eddie Howe to determine whether he will remain at the club for another season.
Elsewhere, Newcastle need to make improvements at centre-back and in midfield, with the latter particularly lacking in depth. The midfield will likely be the priority after a striker is signed, and a new report has stated a fresh assessment has been made on a Championship ace previously linked with a move to the North East.
- When does the summer transfer window close? New rule explained and when Eddie Howe can make Newcastle United signings
Newcastle United take another look at Jack Rudoni as Sean Longstaff replacement
Losing Sean Longstaff was a blow for Newcastle, but the deal needed to be done for the good of their career. The 27-year-old had fallen down the pecking order on Tyneside and was still eager to be a part of the starting XI. It was always going to be tough for him to break back into Newcastle’s starting line-up given the quality of Joelinton, Sandro Tonali and Bruno Guimaraes, so a move away was best for him.
Newcastle are now looking to sign his replacement, and have identified Coventry City’s Jack Rudoni as a candidate. The 24-year-old enjoyed a great season under Frank Lampard, registering 22 goal involvements in 43 appearances.
Reports earlier this summer stated that Newcastle were interested in Rudoni, and that still remains the case in August.
According to inews, Newcastle have carried out ‘further checks’ on Rudoni as a possible replacement for Longstaff. Coventry’s asking price is still unclear, but the Magpies could be forced to fork out as much as £30million for him, which may see Howe looking elsewhere for a new midfielder.
Howe has confirmed he wants to sign another midfielder this summer, especially after Joe Willock’s latest injury setback.
Jack Rudoni missed Coventry’s recent pre-season game
In May, it was stated that Rudoni is happy to stay at Coventry, as he likes working alongside Lampard. However, it was confirmed that the midfielder has aspirations of playing in the Premier League at some point, so Newcastle could give him what he wants.
Like many other teams, Coventry are preparing for the 2025/26 campaign and have been playing friendlies against the likes of Real Betis and FC St. Pauli. Rudoni was missing from their last game, but Lampard was quick to confirm it was due to an injury scare, rather than any transfer speculation.
“He had a small calf injury, an awareness in his calf yesterday so it was a simple decision to take him out of what is a friendly game, albeit we would have liked to get him some minutes,” Lampard told Coventry Telegraph.
“We hope he is fit to train on Monday or Tuesday.”
Rudoni would be an ideal player to bring in to help provide more depth to Newcastle’s midfield, and the prospect of playing Champions League football will surely be attractive to him.
Receive a digest of our best Newcastle content each week direct to your mailbox
