Latest reports are confirming that Jamaal Lascelles is on the radar of multiple English clubs including Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur. The player is the Toon captain and had an excellent season last time out and could be on the move this season.
Toon boss Rafa Benitez was confident that club captain Lascelles would stay at St James’ Park when speaking to the press at the end of the season. The Spanish tactician had said: “I think he will stay here, and hopefully for the long term. He has huge potential and big clubs will look at him because he is a young, English centre-back.
“It is not easy to find good centre-backs who can play well in the Premier League, especially not English ones, and it’s even harder to find young ones. He has all the attributes to be a target for all top teams because you can see from his performances over the last two years he keeps getting better and better.”
“But I think that for his future, and for his development, that he stays in a place where he can play and he can improve and continue to keep getting better with us. I think he understands that too. He seems happy and he is learning all the time, so I hope he stays for a long time.”
Lascelles was developed and brought into the mainframe by Benitez himself who lifted a below average team, gained them promotion and guided them to a 10th place finish last season in the English Premier League. Lascelles is strong, powerful in the air and has a cool composure to his game.
However, the defender might have higher aspirations of playing for a club who are in Europe and Newcastle United will not be able to provide him that. With big boys like Tottenham Hotspur interested in him, Newcastle will have to fight really hard to keep their star man at the club.
Tottenham have a good defence in place with stars like Jan Vertonghen, Toby Alderweireld and Davinson Sanchez all playing for them. They also have a makeshift cover in Eric Dier. However, the contract situation with Alderweireld is not steady and the Belgian might make his way out of the club. This will leave Spurs short of a defender and getting in a young, solid centre-back like Lascelles will help the North London club.
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Moreover, Lascelles has a good experience of playing in the league and Tottenham will have done a good bit of business by getting him in this summer.
