According to a recent report by Sky Sports, Newcastle United had agreed on a loan deal with Lazio for their Belgian left-back Jordan Lukaku. The same report has also revealed that the Serie A talent would have his medical at Tyneside by Friday and was set to become Rafael Benitez’s first signing of this January transfer window.
However, now reports are breaking via Chronicle Live, that the defender failed his medical at Newcastle United and the deal is now off. The Magpies will now target Monaco’s Antonio Barreca as an alternative.
The Belgian defender, who is the brother of Manchester United centre-forward Romelu Lukaku, has performed well in the Serie A since his arrival from KV Oostende in the summer of 2016. However, Lukaku has missed the major bulk of this campaign due to a severe knee injury but is now back firing on all cylinders on the pitch.
He was recently deployed in a more advanced role down the left flank which has seen him get more freedom to express himself going forward. So it would have been interesting to see how Benitez utilised his talents at St. James’ Park in the second half of this season. However, the question is now moot given the deal is off.
The Magpies are currently in real danger of being relegated from the Premier League once again which has mainly been caused due to the lack of investment from the club’s owner, Mike Ashley over the past few transfer windows.
Benitez has been left with only loan deals to pursue during this winter transfer period. Despite such dire circumstances, the former Liverpool boss was on the verge of acquiring a quality left-back on loan which seemed like a good deal for all parties.
Lukaku needs to get his football career back on track after sustaining a serious injury last year which hampered his progress at Lazio. Now, it is back to the drawing board for Benitez as he would hope that Antonio Barreca could be convinced to join Newcastle.
The Magpies have seen their summer loan signing, Kenedy struggle to find consistency on the pitch so Lukaku could have been the perfect alternative for the Tyneside outfit to unleash down the left flank. The Belgian speedster has only made 8 appearances for Lazio this term and has one assist to his name across all competitions.
The former Anderlecht academy graduate has incredible pace and is a real powerhouse down in the wide areas. He can beat his marker and put in crosses inside the opposition box which makes this failed deal harder to swallow. Hopefully, Benitez would use his man management skills to get in someone like Barrera on loan for the rest of the season.
