Bournemouth’s Set-piece Specialist And More – 3 Wingers Newcastle Should Target In This Window

To say Newcastle’s Championship campaign has been a little underwhelming thus far would be stating the obvious. The Magpies are no longer clear favourites for England’s second tier top prize and now have to prevent dropping into the playoff zone.

The Benitez-led side could yet get back to their impressive best with the winter transfer window offering a lot of hope. Recruiting quality additions to help do exactly just that would provide the team with much-needed depth, and the wing remains one of such areas that could do with some signings.

Here are 3 wingers Newcastle can target in order to add width to a lineup deficient of explosive wingers.

Max Gradel

This Bournemouth winger is a player with a lot of experience under his belt. The former Leicester City and Ivory Coast forward has 5 years of Championship experience and 4 years of Ligue 1 experience and very much has a lot to offer.

But he hasn’t been played regularly this season, making all his 5 Premier League appearances till date as a sub. This lack of playing time sure wouldn’t be going down well with him, and a loan move to Newcastle wouldn’t be something he would object to.

Newcastle are at least certain of returning to the Premier League at the end of the season, and that could be appealing. In his last season in the Championship with Leeds United, Gradel scored 18 goals in 41 games, and the prowess continued 4 seasons later when he bagged 17 Ligue 1 goals in 31 games for Saint-Étienne.

His inconsistent fitness issues have seen him struggle for form, but he has proven to be such a handful on the wings whenever fit. He is now, but he isn’t getting enough time to prove himself again. This great dribbler, crosser and set-piece specialist can sure give Atsu, Ritchie and Gouffran a run for the money.

Modou Barrow

The first Gambian to play in the Premier League has been in and out of the first team this term and since he arrived from Swedish outfit Östersunds, in 2014, but a move to Newcastle could help him hold down a regular playing time.

On his day, Barrow is a thorn in the flesh of defenders, with his pace and dribbling bound to give them nightmares. Such player can add a lot of depth to a Newcastle side struggling on the wings.

His ability to put in excellent crosses from the wings has seen him assist 2 goals, while he has created 21 goalscoring chances in total. Having played on loan with Nottingham and Blackburn, Barrow knows how it’s being done in the second tier of English football, and would definitely be a great addition to the Magpies.

Bartosz Kapustka

The 20-year-old Poland international caught the eyes of scouts at the European Championships following a standout performance in his country’s opening game against Northern Ireland.

The winger started the last group game against Ukraine and was also brilliant, while he made cameo appearances against Germany and Portugal. That was all Leicester City needed to splash £7.5million on his signature, but he is yet to make his Premier League bow since his arrival in August.

Indeed, Kapustka debut for Leicester didn’t come until last weekend where he played 6 minutes against Everton in the FA Cup. The presences of the likes of Musa and Okazaki make it difficult for the Polish youngster to break into Ranieri’s team, and he has made the matchday squad just twice in the EPL.

A loan move for this talented winger could make sense for Newcastle, but he wouldn’t be eligible to join them until next season as FIFA rules prohibit a player from appearing for 3 different clubs in one season, and he made 2 appearances for Cracovia before completing his switch.

This move would purely be a futuristic one.