Report: Incredibly talented 20-year-old centre-back now likely to join Newcastle in January | OneFootball

Newcastle United seem to be in a very strong position to sign a truly elite young centre-back in the January transfer window.

Eddie Howe will be keen to bolster his ranks at St James’ Park this winter, with Newcastle having underperformed in the Premier league so far this season.

The upcoming January transfer window will be a real opportunity for the Magpies to turn their season around with one or two big signings.

Central defence is definitely a position where Howe needs to strengthen.

Sven Botman has only just returned from a long spell on the sidelines, whilst the other options at Howe’s disposal aren’t exactly top tier.

And it seems as though the Newcastle boss is ready to bring in a highly talented young player to push the likes of Jamaal Lascelles and Fabian Schar for their places.

20-year-old likely to join Newcastle in January

It’s now likely that Abdukodir Khusanov will join Newcastle from Lens when the January transfer window opens, according to a report from L’Equipe (print edition December 19th, page 11).

Newcastle have apparently already made an approach for the player and Lens have instructed famous agent Jorge Mendes to facilitate a deal worth around £21-25 million for the defender.

Khusanov – an 18-capped Uzbekistan international – has been producing some eyebrow-raising performances out in France for Lens this season.

The 20-year-old is a superb centre-back and has exceptional strength for someone so young.

In 13 Ligue 1 outings for Lens so far this season, Khusanov has averaged 1.2 tackles, two interceptions, 4.3 clearances and 2.2 successful aerial duels per game.

The Uzbekistan international clearly has absolutely everything needed to succeed at the very highest level.

£21 million or so for the 20-year-old would actually represent fantastic value for the Toon.

And if Newcastle manage to sign Abdukodir Khusanov from Lens in January, it will be a really exciting deal for the club.

Stats via Who Scored.