5 Right-Forward options for Newcastle United in January

Let’s start by saying the term “right-winger” has almost become a thing of the past at this stage, so for now let’s call it a “right-forward” until something cooler comes along.

Filling this role seems to be an elusive concept for Newcastle United over the past couple of seasons - be that because of PSR issues, whirlwind changes at board level, Eddie Howe stubbornness or a continued focus on other positions in the team wherein we are now stacked elsewhere on the pitch (full-backs, left-forward etc).

Whatever the reason - we continue to have a glaring gap on the right-hand side of the pitch, along with a noticeable lack of quality and goal contributions from this side which has left Newcastle United somewhat toothless in attack when our other forwards are struggling or out of form. Eddie Howe has already tried multiple players in this role so far this season - Jacob Murphy, Anthony Gordon, Harvey Barnes, Miguel Almiron and Joelinton have all started and amassed minutes from the right-hand side, with the latter being the only player to have actually scored from this role after starting there.

So we have a problem. Actually we have two. No wait, three.

First - we need to swallow our pride and admit we need to sign in this position, making it our number one priority and allocating the appropriate proportion of our limited transfer budget to it be that in January or in the summer. Last summer we put all our eggs in the centre-back budget by going all-in for Marc Guehi, we can't have a repeat of that fiasco.

Secondly, even taking the first point into account, we still need to seek value in this role. That means not overspending, getting the right player at the right time and ensuring said player will have a profitable resale value if we ever decide to sell later down the line. We can’t really expect to go and spend 60 or 70 odd million on a right-forward knowing we will still need to recruit for other positions, notably in the centre of defence and arguably a striker to support and compete with Alexander Isak. So, we need to be smart, which may also involve taking a risk - something Eddie Howe and team are not always willing to do.

Finally - we need to start looking outside of the Premier League again (sorry folks, that means there will be no Mbuemo, Elanga or Semenyo mentioned here today). While EH clearly likes the idea of “Premier League proven” players, the league has grown so much financially that so-called “lower level” teams will still regard us as rivals and can compete with us financially - therefore they will not allow a player to join a rival on the cheap, and 99% of the time prices will be over-inflated for existing PL players unless they are within the last 12-18 months of their contracts. So we need to look elsewhere - be it France, Netherlands, Portugal or beyond; there’s value to be found, we just need to look.

Taking all of the above on board - here are 5 right-sided forwards that Newcastle United should be looking at ahead of the upcoming January transfer window.

1. Maghnes Akliouche (22 - Monaco)

A quick-thinking diminutive attacker with excellent game intelligence and an ability to unlock low-block opposition defences - precisely what Newcastle need considering their inability to break down bottom-half teams having suffered defeat against the likes of Fulham and West Ham, while only managing draws against Everton, Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest in the Carabao Cup. Akliouche has been in sparkling form for high-flying Monaco this season, 4 goals and 4 assists from 13 starts in all competitions (including two goals in the Champions League) have helped Adi Hütter’s side rise to 2nd in Ligue 1 and 8th in the UCL at the time of writing.

Having already shone for France’s U20 and U21 sides (under the guise of manager Thierry Henry which will have done no harm for his forward play development), it’s only a matter of time before he gets a call-up to the senior side with Michael Olise his main competition as the likes of Ousmane Dembele and Kingsley Coman fall further out of Didier Deschamps’ favour.

Contracted to Monaco until 2028, it may take a substantial fee to lure him from the French Riviera however with many French clubs under financial pressure due to recent issues with TV licensing, an opportunity may present itself in the coming months and Monaco are rarely shy in selling on their top assets for a tidy profit which in this case would be 100% profit having developed Akliouche through their youth academy.

2. Johan Bakayoko (21 - PSV Eindhoven)

A player I have banged the drum about for months on The Irish Mags Show podcast - Johan Bakayoko had a remarkable campaign last year with 14 goals and 14 assists in all competitions, and has again started the season in good form with 5 goals and 3 assists for table-toppers PSV. It was thought a big move would happen last summer when he was included in Belgium’s Euro 2024 squad, however limited minutes meant that he didn’t get a chance to shine on the big stage and another season in the Eredivisie ensued.

Known for his blistering pace, dribbling ability, technique, ball control and explosivity on the break, Bakayoko is a full-back’s nightmare and has recently been compared to the likes of Noni Madueke and even Bukayo Saka in terms of profile; plenty of room to improve in terms of his final product, but he has the potential to thrive under a coach like Eddie Howe who has an excellent track record of developing and improving players with the right attitude.

Fair to say the lad is ambitious - quoted as saying “In the next five years, I want to be close to winning the Ballon d’Or” when speaking to The Athletic in May 2024, he also reportedly rejected a move to Brentford last year in favour of playing Champions League football with PSV.

3. Francisco Trincão (24 - Sporting Lisbon)

When it comes to Sporting, all eyes are currently on Viktor Gyökeres who has been Europe’s top marksman so far this season, his 16 goals putting him ahead of the likes of Erling Haaland and Harry Kane (at least by the end of November). But with goals come assists, and the question we should also be asking is who is creating these chances for the Swede to put away at ease? Enter Francisco Trincão, who has racked up 4 goals and 11 assists in all competitions, with 8 of those assists coming from just 11 league appearances - the majority of which have come from the right-hand side of a front three.

Forget that he had a relatively unsuccessful loan spell at Wolves back in 2021 - at the time Trincão was 20 years old, had made a big move from Braga to Barcelona and was in desperate need of minutes at a time when Wolves had just parted company with Nuno Espirito Santo and we all know how that went; back playing in Portugal, Trincão has been thriving at Sporting however the recent departure of Ruben Amorim may pave the way for another big move for the talented Portuguese forward.

4. Edon Zhegrova (25 - Lille)

Lille have an excellent tradition of producing world class footballers - scouting and signing young talent which they in turn sell on for significant profit, with notable examples in the likes of Eden Hazard, Rafael Leão, Mike Maignan, Gabriel Magalhães, Victor Osimen and of course our own Sven Botman.

Edon Zhegrova looks set to be the next big name added to this list; signed from Basel for a mere €7 million in July 2022, the Kosovan international has proven to be yet another piece of shrewd business and having amassed 6 goals and 6 assists last season, he looks set to better that already this season scoring 4 goals in his opening 10 games for Lille in Ligue 1. Known for his speed, creativity and ball control - Zhegrova is a unique profile in that he often cuts into a forward role, almost becoming a second striker alongside Jonathan David which has resulted in such a healthy goal tally so early in the season.

5. Takefusa Kubo (23 - Real Sociedad)

What a profile this guy has. Signed by Barcelona’s La Masia academy when he was just 11 years old, he scored 74 goals in 30 games in his first full season for their U11 side but due to international transfer policy, he became ineligible and returned to Japan where he became the youngest player ever to play and score in the J-league. After turning 18, he returned to Spain but this time joining Barcelona rivals Real Madrid. He never made a competitive appearance, but after several relatively successful loans it was Real Sociedad who came in for him and he has never looked back since; 9 goals and 7 assists in his first season, 7 goals 4 assists in his second season and already on 4 goals at the time of writing - Kubo’s performances have gathered attention from a host of big clubs around Europe and he is often touted as a potential Mo Salah replacement at Liverpool.

Still only 23, Kubo has his best years ahead of him and he would bring speed, dynamism, skill and most importantly output to Newcastle’s right-flank; he is excellent in 1v1 situations and is also a defender’s nightmare with his ability to evade tackles and get past opposition full-backs. While he would indeed command a sizeable transfer fee, Kubo would be a dream signing as well as adding to Newcastle’s recent attempts at growing their Japanese fan base; better yet, he also (briefly) played with Alexander Isak at Real Sociedad - let’s get these two back together.

There we have it - 5 overseas options for that elusive right-forward role at Newcastle. Whether the board and Eddie Howe are willing to take a punt on another big money overseas signing remains to be seen, with targets like Tyler Dibling or Antoine Semenyo potentially far more attractive in terms of risk and PL experience - that said, there is definitely value to be found outside the Premier League, and it would be great to see Newcastle branch out and reap the benefits which many other clubs have enjoyed in recent seasons.

Thanks for reading - let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

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