Imagine him & Botman: Ashworth can land "astute" deal with £17m NUFC swoop for "rock" - opinion

A claim has emerged regarding a potential Newcastle United swoop for Jean-Clair Todibo in the summer transfer window…

The Magpies have been linked with a move to sign the centre-back, and journalist Pete O’Rourke has claimed that it would be a good move for the Tyneside club as they could pair him with Sven Botman.

He told Football FanCast: “Potentially, those two (Botman & Todibo) look on paper to be a good pairing. If Newcastle were to move for Todibo, you’ve got the left sided centre half and then the right sided centre half in Todibo, who has been talked about for a long time.

“He was a big signing at a very young age for Barcelona. It didn’t work out from there, but he’s rebuilt his career as well. And I think he’s a player that a lot of top clubs have been looking at.

“So I think if Newcastle could get him he will be an astute piece of business by them and as you said Todibo and Botman on paper look like a good central defensive partnership.”

The gem, who is available for €20m (£17m), would be an excellent signing by Dan Ashworth, as he has the potential to be a superb defender for Eddie Howe.

Talent scout Jacek Kulig once called him “solid as a rock“, and his statistics in the 2021/22 Ligue 1 campaign suggest that such a comment is apt.

Last season, Todibo averaged an excellent SofaScore rating of 7.09 across 36 outings. He made three tackles and interceptions per game and won 60% of his duels as he proved that he has the quality to deliver brilliant performances on a regular basis, whilst remaining fit for the majority of the campaign (he missed just two league matches).

Meanwhile, no Newcastle centre-back averaged a Sofascore rating higher than 6.98 in the English top flight, which suggests that the Frenchman