Newcastle United opinion: Should Newcastle sign Jetro Willems?

After injury troubles to Paul Dummett, Newcastle boss Rafa Benitez has been forced to play winger Matt Ritchie at left-back over the last few games. Although Ritchie has done a decent job and Dummett having returned to the first-team, Newcastle need a natural full-back and Jetro Willems will fit the role perfectly.

After being touted as the Netherlands’ next big name, Jetro Willems’ career has slowly gone downhill. After over 150 appearances in the Eredivisie for Sparta Rotterdam and PSV Eindhoven, Willems made a move to German side Eintracht Frankfurt in the summer of 2017.

He was expected to do wonders at the Bundesliga side when he replaced Bastian Oczipka at left-back but but has failed to get proper game time at the club. He started just 19 games in his debut campaign and came off the bench 4 times.

It has been worse this season for the Dutchman as he has started just 5 games in the Bundesliga so far. Adi Hutter’s usage of a back three has really ruined Willems’ chances of regular football as the manager prefers the attack-minded Filip Kostic at left wing-back.

Willems, when used, has been deployed in a number of positions for Die Adler, including central midfield. Despite it not being his natural position, the Dutchman has done fairly well under Hutter but is struggling for minutes.

Willems first rose to the spotlight in PSV’s title-winning campaign in 2014/15. The then 20-year-old caught the eye of many as he provided a staggering 16 assists from left-back. His partnership on the left wing with Memphis Depay was instrumental in PSV’s title win.

Willems uses his exceptional pace and power to get into dangerous positions and his crossing is one of the best in the business. His ability in one-on-one situations both offensively and defensively is very good and his pace helps him cover the ground well.

Although he sometimes gets caught out defensively, Willems has a lot of time to improve and under Rafa Benitez, he could do just that.

The Spaniard has a proven record of turning young players into brilliant players and Willems could join the likes of Issac Hayden, Jamaal Lascelles and DeAndre Yedlin, who have developed their game under Benitez.

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Conclusion

Newcastle will benefit massively with the signing of Jetro Willems and the Dutchman’s versatility will give Rafa Benitez a wide range of options to set his team up. Newcastle should make a move for the player in the summer.