Newcastle United are closing in on a deal for Harvey Barnes after reaching an agreement for Allan Saint-Maximin to leave, and now a new update has emerged on the club's next potential transfer target.
Are Newcastle signing Jesper Lindstrom?
According to German news outlet Frankfurter Rundschau (via Sport Witness), Newcastle are one of the clubs interested in signing Eintracht Frankfurt's Jesper Lindstrom this summer.
As per the report, the Magpies are claimed to be particularly keen on the player, but are competing with Juventus and Arsenal to secure the services of Lindstrom.
It is noted that the Bundesliga club will command a fee of up to €35m (£30m) to part ways with their versatile winger and Newcastle are expected to step up their interest after the sale of Saint-Maximin is completed.
Who is Jesper Lindstrom?
The 23-year-old has been plying his trade with Eintracht Frankfurt and has already been a huge success on the European stage following a Europa League win in 2022, as well as tallying up nine caps and one goal for the Denmark national team.
Lindstrom offers wide versatility in his positioning but is predominantly deployed as an attacking midfielder, where he has had a huge impact at Frankfurt, however, has also made appearances on the left wing, central midfield and in a second striker role too.
Over 77 appearances for his German club, the Danish dynamo – once hailed as "outstanding" by teammate Kevin Trapp – has scored 14 goals and registered 13 assists, with a goal contribution every 185 minutes so far.
As a result, the signing of Lindstrom could be a great opportunity for Eddie Howe to add a player with a wealth of experience and success in European tournaments, as well as bolster the attacking options available next season.
Beyond his goal-scoring abilities, Lindstrom is a huge creative presence; ranking in the top 20% of his positional peers in the Bundesliga last season for progressive carries, tackles won in the defensive third and successful take-ons that have led to goals, displaying strong ball-winning attributes.
Should Newcastle make a concrete move for Lindstrom this summer he could be the perfect partner for Barnes, who is thought to be the direct successor for Saint-Maximin. Indeed, his ball-carrying capabilities and chance creation in the final third could be extremely useful to the Leicester City winger.
Whilst Barnes is a prolific finisher in front of goal, scoring 13 times last campaign, his weakness lies in his ball retention and ball-winning efforts, with the Foxes goal-scorer ranking in the bottom 25% of his positional peers for pass completion, successful take-ons, tackles and interceptions, as per FBref.
Utilising Lindstrom's clear strengths in all that Barnes lacks in his game would provide the Magpies with a full-proof attacking threat and will allow their new potential new signing to focus on what he does best – scoring goals.
With that being said, it would be interesting to see if Newcastle do make a concrete move for Lindstrom this summer, as he would definitely bring something different to the current attacking personnel that Howe has at St James' Park.