Newcastle United have been on a slippy run of form in December. An emphatic 1-0 win over rivals Manchester United in the Premier League almost three weeks ago was followed up by a disastrous spell of four losses in five matches in all competitions, including exits from both the Champions League and the EFL Cup.
While bowing out at the first time of asking will have hurt the Magpies, the defeat on penalties to Chelsea on Tuesday night was arguably a bigger blow for the club, considering Newcastle had a really good chance of winning the competition outright as a result of Manchester City, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United all being eliminated.
Perhaps the most worrying aspect of Newcastle’s performances recently for head coach Eddie Howe will be the constant individual errors at the back which are costing the side points and trophies.
Nevertheless, the manager has turned his attention towards the January transfer window as he hopes to bring reinforcements into the squad ahead of the second half of the campaign.
Newcastle United transfer news – Radu Dragusin
According to a report from TuttoMercatoWeb, via Sport Witness, Newcastle United are still interested in signing Genoa defender Radu Dragusin in January with the defender an 'important name' ahead of the window. The Magpies were previously linked with a move for the centre-half back in September.
The outlet are also claiming that Serie A giants AC Milan are keeping tabs on the Romanian ahead of the winter window.
Furthermore, the report claims that newly-promoted Genoa will be unable to resist an appropriate transfer fee for the player. The Telegraph revealed on Tuesday that the Romania international’s price tag is £26m, having signed for Genoa for merely £4.8m back in January.
Speaking in a recent interview with Turkish outlet Fanatik, Dragusin’s agent confirmed that Newcastle were one of three English clubs he spoke to about potentially acquiring the services of his client.
His agent said: “I have been in London for some time and have almost weekly meetings with important teams. We are getting closer and closer. I spoke to Newcastle, to Arsenal, to Tottenham. I also have messages with them, conversations. There are teams that ask.”
On the contrary, reports have also emerged that Dragusin could sign a new long-term contract with Genoa which could lift his price tag even further.
Dragusin is perfect after Newcastle injury update
While the team’s recent results reflect badly on Howe, the manager has struggled to gain any consistency in his side due to the number of absences in the first-team squad.
Even on Saturday, as Newcastle cruised to victory over Fulham at St. James’ Park to pick up their only win in five games, both Fabian Schar and Joelinton had to be replaced in the first half. The Geordie outfit currently have 13 players unavailable, a tally which includes 12 injuries and one suspension.
One area that has been ravaged the most with injuries is the backline. Dan Burn recently just recovered from a six-week spell on the sidelines with a back problem, while Sven Botman’s 45-minute cameo was his first start since September. Furthermore, Fabian Schar and Emil Krafth are doubts ahead of Saturday’s away at Luton Town.
Newcastle need defensive reinforcements in January to avoid a further slide in results and performances. However, any potential signings will need to have reliable injury records as well to avoid more of the same from happening.
Thankfully, Newcastle seem to have the all-clear on this front regarding Dragusin. The 21-year-old has missed a total of 28 days in his professional career so far and hasn’t been unavailable since November 2020 when he was suffering from muscle fatigue, according to Transfermarkt.
Radu Dragusin’s stats this season
Despite primarily playing as a centre-half in a back three under World Cup winner Alberto Gilardino at Genoa, the ex-Juventus star has still managed to score twice in all competitions for the club. Only three players have found the net more times for Il Grifone.
Nevertheless, Newcastle need Dragusin to be a superb defender, rather than a goalscorer. When compared to all other centre-backs from Europe’s top-five leagues this season, he ranks really well in a number of key metrics.
Non-Penalty Goals
75
Non-Penalty Expected Goals
65
Key Passes
87
Progressive Passes Received
86
Touches In Attacking Penalty Area
86
% Of Dribblers Tackled
98
Clearances
72
Passes Blocked
91
Aerials Won
86
% of Aerials Won
92
Dragusin made just four appearances for Juventus during his time with the Italian giants before eventually leaving permanently for Genoa. Football scout Jacek Kulig even described the former Juve youngster as being a “complete and dominant” central defender.
Now, the Bianconeri could be forced to pay dearly for not trusting Dragusin in the first-team if the player eventually leaves for big money.
Newcastle could sign Almiron upgrade who's "very fun to watch"
Newcastle United could look to sign this big upgrade on Miguel Almiron in January.
ByKelan Sarson
The centre-half has also become an integral part of Gilardino’s side, having started all 16 games in Italy’s top flight in the 2023/24 campaign, proving his reliability for his club.
As Newcastle recently spent £35m to bring Botman to the English northeast, it’s unlikely that Dragusin will take his spot in the team in the long term. However, the right-footer could potentially come for club captain Jamaal Lascelles’ place.
How Dragusin compares to Lascelles
The skipper is now on the wrong side of 30 and has seen less and less action in recent seasons. Lascelles has started 13 of the Magpies’ 26 games this season in all competition but made merely one appearance before Botman picked up a nasty knee injury which kept him out of the side for three months.
In addition, Dragusin has been holding his own against Lascelles this term statistically.
Goals
0.6
0.9
Expected Goals
0.6
0.6
Progressives Passes
1.44
2.61
Progressive Passes Received
0.75
0.27
Key Passes
0.44
0.18
Tackles
0.75
1.17
Tackles Won
0.50
0.72
Interceptions
1.06
0.27
Clearances
4.56
3.51
Aerial Duels Won %
70.1
66.2
Indeed, as can be seen, Newcastle's current target is more adept in the air, is a better reader of the play and appears to be more front-footed, with his level of key passes a great deal higher. As a result, this could be a really astute acquisition by the Toon for relatively cheap and would certainly help Howe ease the injury woes in his side.
