Two Replacements For Vurnon Anita And Yoan Gouffran Who Newcastle Can Target
Times are changing at Newcastle and all for the better. Despite giving a chance to players of Championship standard in order to handle the league; Murphy, Diame, Gouffran and Anita being some of the key ones, Rafa Benitez is a typically ruthless top level coach and will say goodbye to those who are not deemed to be Premier League class.
Two players, who, considering the kind of performances they have given, will certainly not be back in a black and white shirt are Yoan Gouffran and Vurnon Anita. But who will the former Liverpool and Real Madrid coach look to replace them with? Here are some options:
Calum Chambers (for Anita)
DeAndre Yedlin, it would seem will be retained, though whether he is good enough to lift Newcastle up the league is open to question. In any case, Benitez knows he will need more than one option at right-back next season and Chambers would be the perfect man for the job.
After signing for Arsenal from Southampton for a huge fee, Chambers ended up like so many others in not getting his feet fully under the Emirates table. Much debate has surrounded the England prospect regarding whether he is a centre-back or a right-back, but I think the stats tell their own story.
Having joined Middlesbrough on a season-long loan, Chambers started 20 of his games at centre-back, achieving an average rating on Whoscored.com of 6.99/10 in the process. When switching to right-back, although doing it only 5 times, that rating changes to 7.40 which is a very good stat indeed. Chambers has all the attributes Benitez usually looks for in a right-back and could end up at the Toon come August.
Gylfi Sigurdsson (for Gouffran)
Although Gouffran’s replacement may yet come from within in the shape of Rolando Aarons, Benitez does appear to be in the market for someone else to play instead of Gouffran and the Swansea City man may be the answer. Although he does not possess the pace of Aarons and having a penchant to step inside, Sigurdsson is more than comfortable starting games on the left-hand side.
Benitez does not mind his side getting a little narrow and so the extra support gained to the front man by Sigurdsson ghosting in from the left may just be what is needed. Most of all, Sigurdsson is a realistic target for Newcastle as long as the price is right. He is now in his second spell at Swansea having been at Spurs in between and produced another great season with the Swans.
His fitness and commitment are not in doubt; a full 38-game Premier League season gained him 9 goals and 13 assists which is a truly remarkable stat for a player whose team narrowly avoided relegation. Yes, Tottenham let him go, but at 27-years-old he is just reaching his peak and may yet prove to be a player worthy of plying his trade regularly in the top 6 in England, which is probably where Benitez sees Newcastle.