Scenes of unadulterated elation paved their way back to St. James’ Park as Newcastle United have successfully earned an immediate promotion back to the Premier League. After getting demoted to the Championship as a result of a disastrous campaign in the top tier last season, the Magpies were consolidated and reconstructed brick by brick by their gaffer in the shape of Rafael Benitez, who is unarguably amongst the elites in the game. He nodded to the baptism of fire and has indeed come out with flying colours with his troops.
The Spaniard has been perennially renowned for discharging his duties silently and without making much of fuss or grabbing a lot of limelight and his achievement with Newcastle United is a recent testament to the same. Benitez would, however, be keen to solidify his ranks in the summer transfer window before he ventures into the hostile zone of the top tier of English football once again and reportedly, one of the players to have been on his radar is Saint-Etienne’s marauding fullback Kevin Malcuit.
Malcuit is undoubtedly one of the finest players in Ligue 1 this season and has been a vital cog in the tactical setup of the Greens so far. Predominantly a right-back who has been used as a central defensive midfielder, as well as a right, sided midfielder by Christophe Galtier, the 25-year-old is seen as a prospective candidate to slot into the right-back slot for the Toons who have shuffled their personnel quite a few times this campaign. Frankly speaking, Malcuit is a player for such a job and would seemingly acclimatise himself with the tactical nous of the former Real Madrid manager.
Tall, strong and a well-furnished modern-day fullback, Malcuit has all the ingredients to excel. He loves to dribble, has an excellent eye for passing the ball in a shrewd manner, and possesses a decent pace to stretch as well as outrun the opponents’ defensive line with ease. The former Monaco man’s height gives him an advantage whilst dealing with set pieces. Moreover, he tackles and intercepts well which makes him an appealing target for a club like the Geordies.
So far this season in the French top tier, the Frenchman has registered 22 appearances, during which he has bagged 3 assists. Coming to his defensive aspects, Malcuit has made 2.8 tackles, 2.5 interceptions, 2.1 clearances, 0.8 dribbles and 0.1 blocks per game on an average, which is impressive indeed. Newcastle United have lured a lot of French talents into their ranks since a very long time and unsurprisingly, Malcuit could very well be on his way to St. James’ Park in the summer owing to his fine calibre.
Statistics Credits: WhoScored.com
