Newcastle United journalist John Gibson has thrown his support behind the idea of the club signing Georginio Wijnaldum in the January transfer window.
Recent reports have suggested that Newcastle could be set to make a move for the 31-year-old midfielder, with TEAMTalk claiming that Eddie Howe’s men are ‘keeping tabs’ on him having ‘made it clear they would be interested – if he was to become available’, with the report claiming that Wijnaldum’s representatives are exploring potential new clubs for him following a lack of playing time this season.
Wijnaldum only signed for current side PSG this past summer having left Liverpool as a free agent, but previously spent time at St. James’ Park before his spell at Anfield in 2015/16, as he scored 11 goals and chipped in with five assists as Newcastle United were relegated to the Championship.
Gibson spoke about the reports on a recent edition of NUFC Matters, talking about what sort of impact he could have on the Newcastle side were they to make a move for him and what an improvement he would be on what the club already have:
“Of course, you would have him back, because he scores goals – or he did for us. And towards the end, he was playing more defensively with Liverpool, but he can score an awful lot of goals. He’s been in the Holland side that’s done so well. He would be a massive uplift on what we’ve got in the middle of the park now.”
TIF Thoughts on John Gibson’s comments about Newcastle United and Georginio Wijnaldum…
Would you like Wijnaldum back?
Yes
No
Gibson is right when it comes to his analysis of Wijnaldum, as whilst the Dutchman was used as a more attacking player for Newcastle – playing in attacking midfield and on the left wing for the majority of his time there – for PSG and Liverpool, he has dropped into more of a central or defensive role, which would have played a part in his inability to break double digits since his time on Tyneside.
And his attacking flair is something that Newcastle would certainly be able to benefit from, as goals from midfield have been lacking recently, with only Joe Willock getting more than two last season and nobody getting above one so far in 2021/22.
Whilst it might be a bit of a step back from him to go from a Champions League side to one that is threatened with relegation, Newcastle certainly have the finances to make it happen in terms of a fee and wages, so it will be interesting to see if they are able to tempt him with a move as the January window gets ever closer.
In other news: ‘When you talk to agents’ – Mark Douglas drops transfer claim on Tarkowski ‘problem’ at NUFC