After supposedly seeing a third offer turned down in pursuit of Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi, Newcastle United have opened talks to sign an alternative option who knows all about clean sheets at St James' Park.
Newcastle transfer news
The Magpies, to their credit, have so far gone above and beyond in their chase to land Guehi, with their latest bid reportedly worth as much as £60m plus £5m in add ons. Yet, still, Steve Parish and Palace have not budged and Guehi currently looks set to stay put at Selhurst Park, perhaps leaving Newcastle with no choice but to look at alternative options.
It must be said that, whether it's Guehi or another option, Eddie Howe needs another central defender in his side. As things stand, he's starting the season without both Sven Botman and Jamaal Lascelles and will likely have no choice but to turn towards Dan Burn when it comes to an extra centre-back in the opening weeks. That's where one former Premier League player would help, however.
According to Caught Offside, Newcastle have opened talks to sign Andreas Christensen from Barcelona this month, with the La Liga giants willing to start negotiations at £22/23m. A Champions League-level defender, who would cost half of what Crystal Palace want for Guehi, signing Christensen instead of the England international would be a stroke of genius, on paper.
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The Magpies have just two weeks to complete their summer business before the window slams shut and a central defender must be their priority. As their move for Guehi remains deadlocked, the £148,000-a-week Christensen represents an incredibly ideal alternative.
"Intelligent" Christensen can match Guehi's quality
Whilst it's easy not to doubt Guehi's ability, especially after his performance for England at Euro 2024, question marks remain over whether Newcastle should be paying more than £65m for a defender who is yet to play a single minute of Champions League football.
Relatively untested on the big stage aside from his recent experience under Gareth Southgate, Newcastle would be closing in on transfer records in what would still be a risky move.
Christensen, alternatively, comes without those risks. He's got that crucial top-level experience under his belt, even winning the Champions League, and as a bonus, knows all about keeping clean sheets at St James' Park after playing 90 minutes in a 3-0 thrashing of the Magpies during his final year at Chelsea.
Progressive Carries
24
15
Progressive Passes
117
67
Tackles Won
14
19
Ball Recoveries
107
120
It was during his time at Chelsea that Christensen earned the praise of former manager Thomas Tuchel, who said via Sportskeeda: "I think it's important we accept the personality of every player. Some are more loud, some aggressive, some more calm. He's a calm guy, very intelligent player.
"Sometimes, you can get maybe a bit misled by judging him from his personality because he is a hard defender and he is a guy who is not shy to have hard tackles and win challenges and step up in games."
