According to the latest reports from Shields Gazette, Newcastle United are in the mix to sign Boca Juniors’ in demand midfielder Nahitan Nandez. The midfielder is wanted by Serie A club Cagliari who came perilously close to signing him in January. Leeds United are also said to be interested.
The midfielder is being valued at €20m and he is one of the star players for the South American heavyweights. The 23-year-old played a crucial role for Uruguay in the 2018 World Cup, and he was regular in midfield alongside Lucas Torreira.
The future of Mohamed Diame and Jonjo Shelvey looks uncertain at the moment, and Benitez is expected to go after a midfielder if he goes on to lose some of his players in the summer. Nandez would be a perfect fit at Newcastle, and we believe that he can be a major signing for them if they manage to pull this off.
Mike Ashley has often been blamed for not backing Rafael Benitez in the transfer market, but things could be changing as the Magpies broke their all-time record in January to sign Miguel Almiron. Nandez too isn’t going to come in cheap so it remains to be seen whether the club would look to shell out that kind of money again in the summer.
The 20 times Uruguayan international has an impressive work rate, and that should suit the Toon well. Benitez often takes a conservative approach while setting up his team and the midfielders work very hard off the ball. Nandez’s major assets are his perseverance and tenacity, but he can produce quality on the ball as well. The midfielder’s link-up is also top notch, and he would be a perfect fit to Benitez’s playing style.
If United goes on to sell Shelvey for decent money in the summer, then they should get the funds to bring in Nandez. The midfielder hasn’t played outside of South America in his career so adapting to a new league might be a challenge for him.
However, from the pieces of evidence from his performance for his national side, we feel that the midfielder would be a big hit for quite a few clubs and it is time for the Uruguayan international to make a move to play in Europe. The Magpies need to back Benitez in the transfer market so that he can take the Tyneside outfit to the next level and Nandez’s signing would definitely be a big one for them.
