Newcastle have completed the signing of Leicester City striker, Islam Slimani on a loan deal for the remainder of the season. Rafael Benitez was quoted, “He is a player who can fight with defenders, challenge and score goals. Hopefully, he can give us some experience and some different characteristics to the strikers we have at the moment.”
Newcastle United’s return to top-flight English football has not gone exactly the way they had expected it to. Benitez’s men are coming off a 1-1 draw against Burnley on the deadline day and are currently in the 14th spot of the Premier League. The relegation scraps are just a point behind them and just one slip will see the Magpies drop to the bottom three.
Slimani’s arrival will give the side an all-important boost in their battle for Premier League survival. The Algerian can perform the role of a traditional number nine which is lacking in the Newcastle squad. Gayle and Joselu are versatile forwards and can be fielded alongside the Algerian in the final third.
Now that he has arrived here is how Newcastle will lineup.
Formation : 4-2-3-1
Defence
Karl Darlow has taken over the number one spot in between the sticks while Rob Elliot has been riddled with injuries.
Jamaal Lascelles and Ciaran Clark are well matched in the centre-back positions. The duo has been shaky at times but is still the better option ahead of Florian Lejune.
Kennedy has also arrived on a loan spell but does not possess enough quality on the defensive end to overtake the Paul Dummett on the left back role. The Brazilian might appear sporadically.
DeAndre Yedlin is also the better choice ahead of Javier Manquilo to appear on the right.
Midfield
Mohamed Diame and Mikel Merino have looked solid in the holding midfield role but Jonjo Shelvey brings a certain cutting edge in terms of offensive quality.
Ayoze Perez has been the best attacking threat for the Magpies in recent times and is always a handful for the opposition defence. With him, in the shadow striker role or at the attacking midfield role, United can hope to launch the quick counter attacks. The flanks might be occupied by Christian Atsu and Matt Ritchie with the latter on the right.
Attack
Dwight Gayle’s shy run of form might get him benched along with Joselu. With a decent amount of delivery from the deeper positions, Slimani is the best suited to lead the team’s attack.
