Newcastle hijacking Tottenham’s €23m deal for midfield powerhouse would solve their problems

Why Newcastle should beat Spurs to Wilmar Barrios’s signature in January

According to a report from Crack Deportivo, Tottenham Hotspur are interested in making a move for Wilmar Barrios in January.

The 25-year-old Colombian arrived at Boca Juniors in August 2016 and has gone onto make 47 appearances, scoring a goal.

Wilmar Barrios was heavily linked with a summer move to Tottenham Hotspur, having impressed at the World Cup with Colombia, but he decided to stay with Boca until the end of their Copa Libertadores campaign.

Now the report claims that Tottenham already have an agreement on personal terms with Barrios’ representatives, and they will now offer €23million for the 25-year-old in January.

Newcastle United should hijack Tottenham’s deal for Wilmar Barrios in January. Newcastle have failed to produce good results in the new Premier League season, which has put Rafael Benitez under immense pressure. Benitez wasn’t heavily backed during the summer transfer window after an impressive tenth-placed finish last term.

Going by Newcastle’s performances so far this season, the defence has royally flopped but bigger concerns remain in the attack, which has looked lifeless and devoid of any cutting edge. The Magpies did sign the likes of Kenedy, Yoshinori Muto and Salomon Rondon in the summer but they haven’t delivered the goods.

Truth be told, the attacking players have lacked service from the midfield as Jonjo Shelvey and Mohamed Diame have underperformed.

Shelvey needs a defensive midfielder alongside him to perform at his best. Diame is the one who helps Shelvey with the freedom he needs to excel in the middle of the park but the Senegalese has been a shadow of his former self this season. Keeping that in mind, the Magpies could solve the midfield conundrum by bringing in Barrios from Boca Juniors.

Barrios is a midfield powerhouse filled with a lot of energy who excels with his game-reading and tackling abilities. The 25-year-old is primarily a central defensive midfielder by trade, renowned for his physicality and combative nature. The Colombian possesses a fantastic engine and he uses his sharp reflexes and perfect positional awareness to provide solidity to the midfield.

Barrios is not a very good passer of the ball and lacks composure, but his ball-winning abilities are exemplary.

His work rate is extraordinary and his defensive discipline is top-notch, which makes him the ideal player to partner Shelvey in Newcastle’s midfield. The Colombian would be an upgrade on Diame and would surely strengthen Newcastle’s midfield options.

Read more: Why Newcastle would get a real creator in this 27-year-old Turkish league sensation if they get him in January

Hence, Benitez should certainly go for Barrios, who could provide his team with the qualities to turn their fortunes around this season.