United currently find themselves firmly in the race to land Champions League football next season.
With 22 Premier League games played, the Magpies have won 10, drawn 11 and lost just one of them, leaving them in fourth place with 41 points on the board.
One figure in Eddie Howe’s squad that has played a prominent role in getting the Toon where they are this season is Bruno Guimaraes.
Having appeared in 17 league games, the midfielder has scored three goals, delivered three assists and earned himself an overall performance rating of 7.25/10 from WhoScored, making him the joint second-highest-rated player at Newcastle.
Despite his impressive season, one other player that the Toon have recently been linked with that we feel would be an upgrade on the Brazilian is Ajax midfielder Edson Alvarez.
The 25-year-old joined the Dutch club back in 2019 and has since gone on to make 129 appearances across all competitions, scoring 10 goals and delivering five assists along the way.
In terms of being an alternative to Guimaraes, the duo’s current individual domestic campaigns have shown why Alvarez could fit the bill.
Is Bruno Guimaraes Newcastle's best player?
Yes
No
For example, from an attacking point of view, Alvarez has a significantly higher rate of shots at goal per 90 minutes than the Toon star (2.32 vs 0.90) as well as making more passes into the final third of the pitch than him (114 vs 72).
Then from a defensive standpoint, the Mexican has made more successful tackles (25 vs 19) than Guimaraes and more clearances (44 vs 13).
To further highlight how much of an upgrade the Ajax star could be, he also has more progressive carries (31 vs 17), recoveries (148 vs 126) and a higher passing accuracy percentage (88.4% vs 81.6%) than the Newcastle figure.
Hailed as a “tenacious” player by talent scout Jacek Kulig, Alvarez would certainly be a strong signing for PIF and give Eddie Howe an extra bit of strength and quality to his midfield.