Newcastle United were devasted after missing out on Abdukodir Khusanov to Manchester City.
The January transfer window has not been kind to Toon boss Eddie Howe or sporting director Paul Mitchell.
It has been a story of missed opportunities throughout despite a desire to bring players in to keep up the club’s ambitions of returning to the Champions League.
Newcastle were offered Donyell Malen by Borussia Dortmund but did not react fast enough before he signed for Aston Villa.
Mitchell had also sent Newcastle scouts to watch Romain Esse at Millwall – he was tapped up by Crystal Palace and scored in his debut on Sunday.
The biggest blow looks to be the failure to land Abdukodir Khusanov due to ongoing PSR struggles. Newcastle were frontrunners to sign Khusanov but they could not get the deal done as they would have risked a points deduction if the deal was done.
Newcastle have looked at alternatives and had identified one with a close link to Khusanov. It now looks like they will miss out on him as another Premier League club swoop in.
Wolves enter talks for Newcastle target Kevin Danso
Kevin Danso played alongside Khusanov at RC Lens before he left to join Manchester City.
Khusanov’s debut for the club on Sunday did not get off to the best of starts when he was deemed to be at fault for Chelsea’s goal, he would then be booked shortly after and was taken off after 54 minutes.
According to the Telegraph, Wolves have now entered talks over a move for Danso. Vitor Pereria’s side are struggling towards the bottom of the league table and are in desperate need of bodies in defence after losing Max Kilman to West Ham at the start of the season.
So far this season, Danso has made 12 Ligue 1 appearances for Lens under English manager Will Still. It now looks like he will lose two highly rated centre-backs in the same window.
Newcastle were linked to Danso who was seen as an alternative to Khusanov when Man City began to look more favoured to land him.
The report states that if Danso were to move, the transfer fee would be £16m.
Newcastle can wait until the summer for a centre-back
While potentially missing out on Danso is a blow for Howe, it is not the end of the world. Newcastle have several options that they can look to at centre-back if need be.
Sven Botman’s return from injury is a massive boost. He has enjoyed frequent runouts in Newcastle’s starting XI since his return in January. Dan Burn is still in top form this season – his performances have been a breath of fresh air for Howe who may have been left wondering if he could perform to a high standard each week.
Fabian Schar and Lloyd Kelly are also available. Howe will soon have Jamaal Lascelles at his disposal again once he is back from his extended absence due to an ACL tear. The 31-year-old is due back in March but is out of contract at the end of the summer.
With Danso only 26, Newcastle could be missing out on a long-term defensive option. But Mitchell will surely assess the lay of the land in the summer.
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