Howe could finally axe Fraser in Newcastle deal to sign "electric" £17.5m "cheat code" - opinion

Newcastle United have had a fairly quiet summer transfer window so far as they have only added two players to their squad from the 2021/22 campaign.

The Magpies have snapped up Matt Targett on a permanent basis after his loan spell from Aston Villa and have brought in Nick Pope and Sven Botman to improve the backline.

Eddie Howe has not, however, received any attacking reinforcements as of yet and he will surely be hoping that changes in the weeks to come.

His squad only scored 44 goals in their 38 Premier League matches last term and this suggests that he needs an influx of quality in the final third.

One player who must be replaced is underperforming winger Ryan Fraser. Whilst he may be a decent option to have on the bench, his statistics since arriving at the club indicate that he is not good enough to be a go-to option out wide.

The Scotland international has played 45 times in the top-flight since arriving in 2020 and has only racked up two goals and five assists. He has clearly struggled to make a big impact at the top end of the pitch and that is why the club should be looking to sign an upgrade on him.

In order to axe the dud from playing regular minutes in the team, Newcastle will need to sign a replacement and they could do that by bringing in Maxwel Cornet from Burnley.

Craig Hope recently claimed that the club have been in contact over a potential deal to sign the Clarets attacker in the coming weeks.

He Tweeted: “Exclusive: Newcastle ask Burnley about winger Maxwel Cornet but compromise on price would need to be reached. NUFC prefer structured deal & not £17.5m release clause in one sum. Talks continue but one of few wide options being explored (inc James Maddison)”

Chronicle journalist Charlie Bennett