Whilst some may still feel that Newcastle are punching above their weight this season, if Newcastle continue to show their ambition in the transfer market, they’ll no longer be considered a surprise-package. Whilst there’s something to be said for being underdogs, I’m sure the long-term aim is to develop a team of players who will be able to stand up against the regular top four.
The signing of Papiss Cissé continued this trend and now it appears that Newcastle are in the market for a central defender. A 5-2 thrashing from Fulham will do that to a team.
But I’m a little disappointed with the calibre of players that Newcastle have found themselves linked to. The latest of these rumours from The Independent suggest that the Magpies are set to make a £2m bid for Watford centre-back Adrian Mariappa.
Whilst a long-term injury to Steven Taylor has forced Alan Pardew’s hand, I was hoping that the boss would take his time to scour the transfer market and come up with another gem. I could be wrong, but it strikes me that although Mariappa is a solid player, he’s not a ‘special’ player, unlike recent additions Yohan Cabaye or Demba Ba.
Let’s just say that there’s a reason Watford are willing to let him go for just £2m and it’s not because they need every penny they can get.
Let’s not forget, this is a Championship player. There’s no guarantee that he’d be able to make the step up to the Premier League. What’s more, there has been no indication that he’s ready to step up to a club looking to crack the top four.
One of Mariappa’s main assets is his turn of pace and that’s probably what has seen him linked to Newcastle who have looked a little leggy at the back in recent times.
But what Newcastle has achieved this season means they deserve to be linked to bigger and better players. Why aren’t they being linked with the likes of Ashley Williams, or even Jan Vertonghen? They’ve been a force to be reckoned with this season and the transfers that Pardew make should reflect this.
Both players have the ability to really add something to this Newcastle side and wouldn’t end up being just bit-part players.
Whether or not Mike Ashley will front-up the money for a signing like this, however, remains to be seen.
Follow @ThePerfectPass on Twitter for details on all the latest updates and various football-related musings.
Introducing the neat little app that’ll pay you to view content tailored to your interests:
ThisisFutbol.com are seeking new writers to join the team! If you’re passionate about football, drop us a line at “thisisfutbol.com@snack-media.com” to learn more.
Thonk you are missing the point. The likely hood is that the cb we buy will be 3rd, possibly even 4th, choice when Taylor comes back and we need a player who would accept that. Taylor -Collo is a very strong partnership. The fact that we are looking at championship level players with potential is reassuring for me in that they aren’t a Collo replacement.
Yes he maybe a 3rd or 4th choice CB but could 1st or 2nd choice LB he dosent play LB a posistion er are lacking in neither does colo, willi or S taylor so why are even after him we need tall comanding CB who can play both posistions and move Santon over to RB where he belongs, Bassong screams out to me, Kaboul or even Gallas on a 1 year deal.