OPINION
Newcastle United must hijack Wolves’ reported £12million bid for Manchester City 21-year-old Oleksandr Zinchenko.
The Sun claimed on Friday that Nuno Santo’s side had launched a £12million bid to sign the very promising wing-back even though Man City boss Pep Guardiola was in no rush to part company with the player.
The newspaper stated that despite Guardiola’s lack of urgency to get rid of Zinchenko he may reluctantly opt to let the youngster go as his first-team chances will likely be limited next season.
Given that the talented prospect is likely to be on the move due to this, the Magpies must hijack Wolves’ offer for the player and welcome him to St James Park.
Zinchenko is an exciting talent who would get Magpies fans out of the seats through his dribbling skills as the 21-year-old always seems able to closely control the ball in order to weave past his opponents.
The Ukraine international would also make a fantastic signing for Rafa Benitez to make due to his versatility.
The 21-year-old during his career has featured as a left-back as well as being a midfielder capable of playing in a central position as well on either flank.
Zinchenko’s arrival would give Benitez several options on how to set-up his team and see quality cover provided for a lot of positions.
Aside from his dazzling dribbling ability, the talented prospect is a fantastic passer of the ball and has excellent vision when it comes to reading the game and these two attributes see him able to play key passes at exactly the right moment.
Also while these skills see him be an attacking threat for his side Zinchenko is also an accomplished tackler of the ball and is able to successfully shield the ball from his opponents so that his side don’t carelessly lose possession.
The versatile ace may only have eight Premier League appearances to his name all of which he made last season, but to be able to feature for Man City’s team at all when a relatively unproven raw talent is impressive.
This is because Man City’s team is packed with big-money signings and world-class talent that makes it hard for unproven youngsters to get a look in, so the fact Zinchenko managed to kick the ball at all last season is a testament to his talents.
However it’s worth noting he does have some valuable experience under his belt as he played 17 times for PSV when on loan with them in the 2016/17 season and even featured in the Champions League with the Dutch side.
Therefore given his talent, versatility and the realistic chances he’ll leave Man City shortly the Magpies must hijack Wolves’ £12million bid in order to see Zinchenko join them instead.
