Rafa Benitez has managed to get the Magpies back into the top tier just a season after they slipped and now seems determined to take them close to the top of the top flight next season. He is already looking to improve on his squad and is scouting some experienced players who can help his side next season and one player he is reportedly interested in is Arsenal full-back, Kieran Gibbs.
The Gunners have already signed Sead Kolasinac and this leaves Gibbs with little first team football next season. This has seen Arsenal slap a £15m price tag on the player who has just a year left on his contract at the moment. Newcastle United are reported to be one of the many clubs interested in the English star but should Rafa sign him up?
With 137 appearances for Arsenal, Wimbledon and Arsenal youth product Gibbs was touted to be the next best player for the left back position in the country but he failed to establish himself in the first team under Arsene Wenger and has only managed 10 caps for the English national side.
At just 27, he is only reaching his prime as a footballer and could easily be the first choice for Rafa next season. Paul Dummett, the Welsh international has done a terrific job for the Magpies coming out of their youth academy. He will be the biggest threat for Gibbs for a place in the first team next season as Massadio Haidara and Achraf Lazaar are not expected to be crucial parts of the squad.
Gibbs is a sound full-back who can perform his duties well at both ends of the field. Though the Spanish manager might want a more attacking backup to a defensively smart Dummett, Gibbs will only improve the backline and will give the manager plenty of cover for the next season.
Though it is not a position of utmost importance at the moment for Newcastle, Gibbs can solve the problem for years to come and allow Benitez to sell one of Haidara or Lazaar this summer. The Arsenal man is a definite upgrade on either of those names and if he joins Newcastle, he could be taking a step into a new revolution at the St James.
The former Liverpool boss had Newcastle playing an eccentric form of football which can blow some teams away even in the Premier League and adding experience will surely help them go the distance. At £15m, Gibbs is hardly too expensive in this market and it might be time for Newcastle to find a permanent fix to their left-back position.
