Newcastle United are interested in making a potential move to bring Sporting Lisbon’s promising winger Gonzalo Plata to St James’ Park in January.
The Magpies are set to operate under a restricted budget during the January transfer window. The club are likely to focus on the loan market with finances tight due to the global pandemic, per The Northern Echo. However, Steve Bruce is still aiming to strengthen his squad in key areas ahead of an important second half of the season.
It has emerged that Newcastle could be set to rival the likes of Leicester, West Ham and Brighton in pursuit of Plata. Sporting Lisbon are prepared to allow him to leave the club on a loan basis in January with a view to a £20m permanent switch in the summer, per The Sun [via Chronicle Live].
Newcastle could potentially see Miguel Almiron depart during the January transfer window. The Paraguayan is reportedly unsettled at St James’ Park due to lack of minutes and Atletico Madrid have been named as one club with a potential interest in him, according to journalist Roberto Rojas.
That could potentially leave the Magpies needing to enter the market for a new attacking option in January and Plata may be the type of player who can be brought in to improve their depth in the attacking third were Almiron to leave.
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Plata he has emerged as one of the most promising attacking players in Portugal after enjoying a promising campaign with Sporting Lisbon last term. He registered two goals and two assists in 21 league appearances, as well as averaging one key pass and 1.5 successful dribbles per game (Sofascore).
A fee of £20m would likely be beyond Newcastle’s resources in January, although that might change if Almiron were to leave St James’ Park in the winter. A loan move could be a useful option for the Magpies in January as it would give them a chance to assess whether he could adapt to the Premier League before committing large resources to him.
However, the Magpies might struggle to compete financially with the other teams interested so they might have to act quickly to firm up their initial interest in him. It would be a surprising arrival but one which would be welcome for the Magpies if it helps provide more precision in the final third of the pitch.
