According to Spanish outlet, Sport, Newcastle United are interested in Barcelona winger, Raphinha.
This is an exciting prospect for a number of reasons, but perhaps the most intriguing aspect of this potential move is the idea of Raphinha playing on the opposite wing.
These two are two of the most tricky and unpredictable players in world football, and their presence on the pitch would bamboozle opposition defences.
Opposition teams would probably have to decide whether to double up on Saint-Maximin or Raphinha, potentially leaving space for the other player, or even the centre-forward, to exploit. And with both players possessing an immense level of skill and trickery, at times a double-up wouldn’t even be enough.
The potential addition of Raphinha would also take some of the pressure off of Saint-Maximin.
The Frenchman has often been Newcastle’s only source of creativity and attacking threat when playing against low blocks, but the Brazilian is another player who can thrive when his team are struggling to break down an opposition – as we saw at Leeds on numerous occasions.
Read Related Also: On Little Men and Big Men: Donald Trump Is the Next President
Saint-Maximin is a player who can get you off your seat, and Raphinha is cut from that same cloth. He can pull something out of nothing and after watching Newcastle’s blunt attack in recent weeks, it’s fair to say that’s what the Magpies need.
Raphinha’s defensive contributions cannot be overlooked either, he is a tireless worker off the ball and regularly tracks back to help out his full-back. Last season he averaged 1.5 tackles and 0.8 interceptions per game in the Premier League, solid numbers for an attacking player.
Raphinha’s ability to track back would also allow him to create an effective partnership with Kieran Trippier who is usually at his best when he has license to get forward.
While Trippier and Raphinha would be a great partnership in their own right, it’s the potential partnership between Saint-Maximin and Raphinha that should really excite Newcastle fans.
The thought of these two players running at Premier League defences is a tantalising prospect. And if they can form a strong understanding on the pitch, they could be one of the most entertaining partnerships not only in England but in the entirety of Europe.
In other news, ‘Flop’: Darren Bent brutally ridicules £175,000-a-week Tottenham player
!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)
{if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?
n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};
if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version=’2.0′;
n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;
t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];
s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window, document,script’,
‘
fbq(‘init’, ‘677672980820926’);
fbq(‘track’, ‘PageView’);
