Arrival of Lejeune would really shake things up at the Magpies

NEWCASTLE United’s centre-back pairing of Jamaal Lascelles and Ciaran Clark proved to be one of the key factors to the club winning the Sky Bet Championship title.

The former Nottingham Forest defender Lascelles made a dramatic rise from the Toon reserves to club captain in just a few months as Rafa Benitez wanted somebody who spoke their mind to be club captain. Lascelles lifted the trophy and could be pleased with his performances during an at times testing campaign.

Whether Benitez hands him the armband next season could depend on who comes through the door.

Benitez always tries to keep players on their toes and with the arrival of Florian Lejeune expected this week, Lascelles may even have a fight to keep his place in the team.

Lascelles is a realist and never shirked the challenge when it comes to the battle for a starting place.

The 26-year-old Frenchman, who is likely to sign from Eibar this week in an £8.7million deal, is right-footed and generally plays in the same position as Lascelles in the heart of a back four.

Interestingly, Newcastle are believed to have experimented behind the scenes towards the end of last season with a 3-5-2 formation and it will be interesting to see whether Lascelles, Clark and Lejuene feature in that type of system in pre-season.

Benitez is ready to listen to offers for Grant Hanley but ideally wants two players challenging for each position.

Chancel Mbemba will also be in the reckoning - but the arrival of Lejeune would shake things up.