Why Newcastle United should revisit their interest in Said Benrahma in January
According to The Shields Gazette, Newcastle United are poised to reignite their interest in Brentford winger Said Benrahma when the transfer window reopens in January, having previously been linked with the Algerian international back in the summer transfer window.
Newcastle, though, weren’t the only club to have been linked with a move for the 24-year-old, with The Sun reporting that Premier League newcomers Aston Villa also had a bid turned down by Brentford.
The 24-year-old, who only moved to Brentford from French club Nice last summer, was a resounding success in his first season in the Championship at Griffin Park the last term, having racked up an impressive tally of 10 goals and 14 assists in 38 league appearances for the Bees.
Benrahma hasn’t started regularly for Thomas Frank’s side in the second-tier in the opening stages of the ongoing campaign due to his struggles with injuries but the Algerian has seemingly done enough to propel himself back on Newcastle’s radar, with the Magpies now exploring the possibility of going back in the market for the 24-year-old’s services.
Despite coming out of their miserly habits to spend big on players like Joelinton and Allan Saint-Maximin this summer, Newcastle United have endured a poor start to their campaign in the Premier League.
The Toon Army has accumulated only 4 points from their first four league games and Steve Bruce probably knows that he has his work cut out to challenge for a top-ten finish this term if the Magpies do not manage to turn their fortunes around soon enough.
Talking about the summer recruits, Joelinton has shown a lot of promise and even scored the winner in the shock 1-0 victory over Spurs away from home but Saint-Maximin has found himself on the sidelines more often than not due to ongoing struggles with injuries.
It would be fair to say that the Frenchman hasn’t done enough even when he has been on the pitch and the early signs do not look all that good for the jet-heeled wide man.
Hence, if Saint-Maximin fails to justify his worth in the coming months, Newcastle might well be forced to dip into the market once again in January to bring in a better player.
Miguel Almiron, on the other hand, is yet to register his first goal for the club since completing a lucrative switch from the MLS back in January last season and the mediocrity of the Paraguayan is sure to set the alarm bells ringing at Tyneside sooner or later.
To put things into perspective, Newcastle reigniting their interest in Said Benrahma definitely looks more like the real deal.
While they apparently missed a trick by not moving for him in the summer, the Magpies should look to make amends with a deal for the Algerian during the mid-season trading period in a bid to add more creativity and depth to their attack.
A technically-gifted wide player capable of playing on both sides of the pitch, Benrahma could add that X-Factor to Newcastle’s attack with his pace, sharpness, agility, link-up play, as well as his natural finesse and ability to carve out chances with his accurate crossing and a vicious eye for key passes in the final third.
The Algerian’s high footballing intelligence and proficiency in cutting inside from the flanks resembles that of Riyad Mahrez, who is amongst the top professionals in English football at the moment.
Truth be told, Newcastle will be pleased if Benrahma even proves himself to be half as good as Mahrez in the top-flight.
The 24-year-old is one of the top players at Brentford and the Bees have made it clear from the sales of Neal Maupay, Ezri Konsa and Chris Mepham in recent times that they do not part ways with their prized assets until and unless there is a good enough ransom put on the table.
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Benrahma isn’t likely to come cheap but Newcastle could have a real talent on their hands for years to come if Mike Ashley agrees to loosen his purse strings for the second time this season.