According to The Athletic, Newcastle United are admirers of Arsenal outcast Aaron Ramsdale. They are interested in a January move for the goalkeeper to replace Nick Pope, who is out with a shoulder injury.
Newcastle United suffered another defeat on Boxing Day against Nottingham Forest at St James’ Park and it was ex-magpie Chris Wood who came back to haunt his former club with a hat trick to snatch all three points.
No other club in English league history has lost more games on Boxing Day than Newcastle (47) and, with injuries piling high for Eddie Howe, there would’ve been low expectations of a high-energy performance from the side, but nobody could’ve predicted just how humiliating the result would be.
A 3-1 loss sees Newcastle fall to eighth in the Premier League table and seven points adrift from their finishing place inside the top four earned last season.
Still, with a difficult trip ahead to Anfield and the transfer window opening on New Year’s Day, Howe will have far too much to consider instead of looking at the league table.
While there won’t be an opportunity to bolster the squad before the challenging clash with Liverpool next week, the Newcastle boss will certainly be thinking about areas of improvement that are much needed to get back on track to compete for a spot in European football again next season.
As a result, it will come as no surprise to Newcastle fans that Aaron Ramsdale has been linked again with a move to Tyneside in 2024, and The Athletic continued to fuel those rumours by mentioning the Magpies in their review of Arsenal’s transfer window today.
The article claims that Newcastle are admirers of the 25-year-old and that the Gunners would consider a loan move for Ramsdale to earn regular football away from the Emirates over the second half of the season—an opportunity Newcastle cannot afford to miss out on.
Should Newcastle sign Aaron Ramsdale?
There is no doubt that Howe has had a rough ride of late with injuries continuously hindering the opportunities to progress in cup competitions and the ability rotate his team during a period of congested fixtures.
However, improving the quality of the squad beyond the starting eleven has been put on the back burner to invest heavily into ensuring the first team is full to the brim with talent first and foremost.
That lack of squad depth has been massively exposed over the last three or four months and now the consequences of that are coming to light, which is exactly why Ramsdale will be such a crucial signing for the Magpies over the second half of the campaign.
Although not his fault entirely, Martin Dubravka just isn’t up to the standards needed to be a reliable and competent first-team Premier League goalkeeper, which he has shown time and time again over Pope’s absence.
The Slovakian shot-stopper has conceded 14 goals in just nine appearances this season, and 11 of those were in his six Premier League appearances, an amount that will certainly stop Newcastle challenging to break into the top four again this season if it continues.
With that being said, the signing of a short-term replacement for Pope will be crucial in January and given Ramsdale’s current situation combined with his wealth of top-flight experience it would make him the perfect candidate for the vacancy at St James’ Park.
