Why Newcastle over West ham could be the ideal destination for this 25-year-old speed demon

According to reports, West Ham are interested in signing Fulham defender Ryan Fredericks in the summer. Newcastle United have also reportedly placed Fredericks on their wishlist.

The right-back played an important part in Fulham’s promotion to the Premier League. The Cottagers have been in talks with Fredericks over a new contract since last year but nothing has materialised so far.

While promotion to the top-flight might get the 25-year-old to finally pen a new deal, West Ham and Newcastle are not losing hopes of getting Fredericks on a free transfer as his contract at Craven Cottage expires.

As things stand, West Ham are in desperate need of defensive reinforcements ahead of the new season. They were defensively all over the place this past season and new manager Manuel Pellegrini has a big task of taking the Hammers back to the top.

The same cannot be said of Newcastle United as they finished 10^th in the table. Rafael Benitez, with a shoestring budget, worked wonders and guided the Magpies to a sensational 10th-place finish. However, Benitez will need to bolster his squad in the summer if he wishes to make progress next term.

The Spaniard wants to sign Fulham’s Fredericks to beef up his squad. The Toon already have DeAndre Yedlin at right-back, so it may not be a position of particular importance for Benitez to upgrade.

Yedlin is an attacking right-back who loves going forward and contributing to the team’s cause. However, he is defensively naïve and has been caught out of position on a number of times this past season. His deputy Javier Manquillo hasn’t been reliable either.

Hence, signing another right-back who can contribute defensively as well as offensively makes sense for the Magpies and Fredericks fits the bill perfectly.

Fredericks was outstanding, performing his defensive duties at will and providing Fulham with an attacking outlet on the right flank. He provided 7 assists for the Cottagers, which is pretty impressive considering that he is a defender. Offensively, Fredericks is good but defensively, he is miles ahead of Yedlin.

Despite being a player that hasn’t proved himself at the top level, Fredericks looks ideal to ply his trade for an elite English club. He joined Fulham from Bristol as a raw product but under the watchful eyes of Slavisa Jokanovic, the 25-year-old has developed his game massively.

Fulham’s promotion to the top-flight may finally see Fredericks commit his future at Craven Cottage but the full-back must consider a switch to Tyneside to work with Benitez. An astute tactician, Benitez has got the most out of average players at Newcastle and will surely help the Fulham star grow.

Fredericks was one of the best right-backs in the Championship and while he has developed a lot at Fulham, a move to Newcastle would see him join a manager who is highly capable of taking his game to the very next level.

For Newcastle, snapping up Fredericks on a free transfer in the summer would simply be a masterstroke.