Newcastle United were 12th in the Premier League for goals this campaign (44) and only had one wide-man who scored more than two league goals, so Eddie Howe is looking to bolster his attack ahead of next season’s push for Europe.
Burnley’s relegation to the Championship could see a number of their players leave this summer and Newcastle are trying to capitalise on the situation by signing Maxwel Cornet.
The 25-year-old scored nine goals with one assist from 26 league games, creating 15 chances, having 13 successful dribbles and whipping in 55 crosses with 18% finding a teammate.
Dean Jones noted that Newcastle aren’t the only side interested in Cornet this summer which may put their pursuit in doubt. He told Give Me Sport: “Cornet, I think they’re going to have so much competition to sign those two. I think half the Premier League wants to sign them, to be honest.”
Newcastle have Allan Saint-Maximin (35 games, 5 goals, 5 assists), Ryan Fraser (27 games, 2 goals, 3 assists), Jacob Murphy (33 games, 1 goal, 2 assists) and Miguel Almiron (30 games, 1 goal, 0 assists), so they could do with at least one new wide-man.
Cornet would be a significant improvement on Howe’s current options and will provide an equal threat across the front three. But Jones’ comments suggest they may struggling to land his signature, so time will tell how this saga plays out.
