There has been so much talk about Newcastle United needing to sign midfielders and forwards this summer. At the same time, they need to strengthen in other positions as well though. One of them is between the posts.
Nick Pope is expected to leave in this window. Ipswich Town are interested in the 34-year-old and an offer north of £10 million could be enough to convince the Magpies to part ways with the veteran.
The club have already signed Ewen Jaouen from Reims. But while a very talented goalkeeper, he might not be ready to take the first-team gloves at Newcastle United straight out of Ligue 2.
So, Newcastle United will need to sign another goalkeeper. And it looks like the Japanese international number one is on their radar.
Newcastle United make contact regarding Japanese goalkeeper
Once again, Japan enjoyed a positive World Cup campaign. They drew with the Netherlands in the group phase and suffered a narrow loss at the hands of Brazil in the round of 32 to get eliminated from the tournament.
One of the standout performers for Japan was Zion Suzuki. And he seems to have caught the eye of Newcastle United for his efforts.
Matteo Moretto said about the situation involving Newcastle United and Suzuki while speaking on Fabrizio Romano’s Italian channel:
“I will add another club to you that made an inquiry for Suzuki, and it is Newcastle. Newcastle asked for information on Suzuki’s situation. I reaffirm there is Newcastle, there are many others, Leeds, many others. Calm, because in any case Suzuki will choose the best project, and Parma will choose the best offer from an economic point of view.”
Is Zion Suzuki the answer for Newcastle?
Of course, Suzuki’s name has not gained popularity just because of the World Cup. He is one of the most highly-rated young goalkeepers in Europe for quite some time now.
Yes, there are still room for improvement in certain aspects. But the potential is there for him to develop into one of the most commanding goalkeepers in the game in the near future.
An injury last season saw Suzuki miss quite a bit of football for Parma last season. But he has bounced back from that and might be ready for the next step now.
Could that be a move to the Premier League? Could it be St James’ Park in particular? We shall see. It would not be a bad idea for someone who is still just 23 years of age, even though it feels like he has been around for a while, having already appeared 28 times for Japan.
It is quite clear that the Magpies do need to bring in reinforcements between the posts this summer. Is Suzuki the answer? Or will they go after someone else? Everything is up in the air, but things are starting to slowly take up.
