Ashworth can seal instant masterclass with NUFC swoop for 24y/o "on par with Van Dijk" - opinion

The previous January transfer window showed just how capable Newcastle United and their owners are when it comes to spending money on bringing new players to St. James’ Park having spent a total of £91.89m last month according to Transfermarkt.

With the summer transfer window set to open for business at the end of the season, it seems as though the Tyneside club have already positioned themselves to launch a potential swoop for another player that will be familiar to a number of Premier League followers.

According to a recent report from The Athletic, Newcastle are “likely to be near the front of the queue” to try and sign Liverpool centre-back Joe Gomez in the summer.

Since joining the Merseyside club back in the 2015 summer transfer window from Charlton Athletic in a deal worth a reported fee of £3.5m, the 24-year-old defender has gone on to make a total of 134 appearances for the Reds across all competitions, winning the Champions League and a Premier League title in the process.

Taking into account how the Englishman has only started one Premier League game this season, a move to Newcastle, if they end up avoiding relegation this season, could be a tempting option for him if he’d be guaranteed regular game time there.

With the reported incoming appointment of Dan Ashworth as the Magpies’ new technical director, securing a summer deal for Gomez, whose performances in the past have been described as being “on par with van Dijk’s” by Jamie Carragher, could be a stunning first deal for the former Brighton & Hove Albion figure to complete.

After all, Newcastle have the likes of Fabian Schar, Federico Fernandez and Ciaran Clark in their squad that have all hit the age of 30, and thus, Gomez would certainly be an