OPINION
Newcastle United must move swiftly to bypass West Ham in the reported race for Barcelona centre-back Marlon Santos as he would be the ideal enforcer to help Rafa Benitez see out his vision for the club.
The Hammers are at front of the line when it comes to signing the enforcer, according to Mundo Deportivo,and that Santos’ club is simply waiting on a formal offer to emerge from the London Stadium.
Yet Santos would be an ideal signing for Benitez to make as the enforcer, whose comfortable with the ball at his feet, would fit right into the way the Spanish manager loves to set-up his team.
The 22-year-old centre-back has shone while on loan at Ligue 1’s Nice in his latest campaign, making 27 appearances in total, and would be a rock at the back for the Magpies if welcomed to St James Park.
The Magpies could do with recruiting another option for the heart of their defence to cover Jamaal Lascelles and Florian Lejeune as according to the Chronicle, current cover Chancel Mbemba is likely to depart the club this summer.
Santos is the perfect option for the Magpies to take as due to his comfort on the ball, he will be able to easily cover Lascelles and Lejeune while learning about the Premier League without being thrown in the deep end.
The enforcer is only 22-years-old so he can afford to be used sparingly in order to be eased into life in England, while also being capable enough to do a job when called upon.
Therefore the Magpies must act swiftly to beat the Hammers to submitting a formal offer and bypass their Premier League rivals by doing so in order to welcome the defender to the club.
As Santos given his ability to play the ball out from the defence, mainly seen in his time at Nice, and the fact he is a solid reliable defender when it comes to the basic art of defending would be the perfect Benitez enforcer.
