Newcastle United will kick off their Premier League campaign a week on Saturday, as they look to work towards their goal of qualifying for European football once again. Last term, the Magpies missed out on such qualification, with Manchester United stealing the final spot thanks to their FA Cup win, despite Newcastle finishing higher in the top flight.
To kick off their season on the 17th of August, Eddie Howe’s side host newly promoted Southampton at St James’ Park, who returned to the Premier League via the playoffs. The following weekend sees a long away trip on the cards for Newcastle themselves, as they travel to the Vitality Stadium to face an exciting Bournemouth team, Howe's former club.
The Magpies' final game before the September international break will see them host Tottenham Hotspur at home. This was a fixture in which Howe’s side ended up on the right side, with the result being a destructive 4-0 victory helped by two goals from Alexander Isak.
To help their case for European qualification next term, Newcastle will no doubt need to strengthen certain areas of their squad and add firepower to help them achieve their goal. They have recently been linked with one winger who could add strength and depth in wide areas.
Newcastle target La Liga winger
The player in question here is Barcelona and Brazilian international winger Raphinha. The 27-year-old could be one of the players Barca move on this summer in order to make room for new marquee signings, and a return to the Premier League is on the cards.
According to reports from Spain, via Football365, Newcastle are the club that ‘insists the most’ on bringing the former Leeds United man to their club this summer, although the winger would prefer to stay at Barca, a move which he called his ‘childhood dream’ the day he was presented by the club.
However, the Magpies are seemingly one of many sides looking to add the Brazilian to their squad. Fellow Premier League side Aston Villa have been linked, as have clubs in Saudi Arabia, although the player would prefer to stay in Europe at this stage.
In terms of a price for the winger this summer, Blaugrana president Joan Laporta would ideally like to hold out for £51m, after already turning down two bids from the North East outfit, worth £34m and £39m. However, the Magpies have shown signs of a willingness to negotiate, after 'reactivating talks with Laporta’ recently.
Why Raphinha would be a good signing
The Brazilian has a more than respectable record during his time at Barca so far. In 87 games for the club, he has scored 20 goals and grabbed 25 assists, which included six goals and nine assists in just 28 La Liga appearances in the 2023/24 campaign.
Given the fact Barca are looking to add Euro 2024 winners Dani Olmo and Nico Williams to their side, and need to sell players to raise funds, Raphinha could present a key opportunity to the Magpies this summer to add attacking firepower on the right wing.
As per SofaScore, his 15 goals and assists in the top flight last term would have been beaten by just two Newcastle players; Isak, who got 23 goal involvements, and Anthony Gordon, who scored and assisted 21 times. Raphinha’s international teammate, Bruno Guimaraes, also registered 15 goal involvements.
Should Howe’s side pursue a move for the in-demand talent this summer, he could help form an excellent partnership with Sweden international Isak. The 24-year-old was quite exceptional last season, and still scored 21 times in 30 Premier League appearances, despite an injury which caused him to miss a fair amount of games.
This could be a deadly duo given Raphinha’s tendency to create chances from seemingly nowhere. He is a creative force on the right-hand side, which he showed during his final season at Leeds, where his 14 goal involvements helped keep them in the top flight of England.
This creativity and ability to fashion chances for himself and a teammate is reflected in his FBref stats. The 27-year-old’s 0.59 assists per 90 minutes last term ranked him in the top 1% of wingers and attacking midfielders in Europe. He actually exceeded his expected assist numbers, averaging 0.31xA in 2023/24, which ranked him in the top 7%.
However, it was not just these stats which showed how impressive the 5 foot 9 winger was from a creative point of view. He also ranked highly for key passes last term, averaging 2.5 per game, which ranked him in the top 14% of wingers across Europe.
A key pass is a pass that directly leads to a shot at the opponent's goal.
Stat (per 90)
Number
Assists
0.59
Expected assists
0.31xA
Progressive passes
3.28
Key passes
2.5
Passes into the final third
2.15
Passes into the penalty box
1.86
The Brazilian’s habit of creating chances from out of nowhere in all kinds of situations is certainly reflected in his stats, too. Last term, he averaged 5.39 shot-creating actions and 0.78 goal-creating actions each game, which ranked him in the top 12% and 7% respectively amongst wingers and attacking midfielders in Europe.
Shot-creating actions are pieces of play that lead to a shot. These include moments such as a pass, take-on or foul being drawn.
This is certainly something that could pair up well with Newcastle’s number 14. Isak is the sort of striker who has a natural-born killer instinct in the penalty box, able to sniff out and get on the end of chances. That is shown by his impressive goal record from last season, which didn’t just happen out of luck.
However, the Sweden striker also loves to get on the ball and run in behind, and this is another area in which the pair could form a dream partnership. As the stats show, the wideman likes to play those balls into the final third from deeper areas, and with Isak running onto those passes, it could be cause for concern for opposition Premier League defences next term.
Raphinha is a “world class” winger, according to football analyst Ben Mattinson, and he has the potential to make Isak unstoppable next season. Although he could cost a pretty penny, the Brazilian could be a perfect option for Newcastle as they look to add depth out wide and strengthen their cause for European football once again.
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