Lee: England stars should be on wish list
ENGLAND trio Jesse Lingard, James Tarkowski and Kieran Trippier are three transfer targets Newcastle United should prioritise in January.
That is the view of Magpies legend Rob Lee, who believes the club’s new owners could be set to make moves for up to six players in the mid-season window.
Eddie Howe’s side registered their long-awaited first victory of the campaign against relegation rivals Burnley at St James’ Park on Saturday.
Callum Wilson’s first-half strike earned all three points and moved the Magpies off the foot of the table ahead of a tricky trip to Leicester City.
Howe has been quick to downplay the inevitable transfer speculation ahead of the January window, stressing each member of his current squad will have a “huge part” to play in the bid for survival.
However, Lee believes the new head coach will require reinforcements in order to defy history and lead Newcastle to safety.
A host of names have already been linked with a potential St James’ Park switch, and the former United midfielder believes three England internationals would be ideal recruits.
Lee said: “I would say Kieran Trippier, James Tarkowski and Jesse Lingard.
“Lingard would score goals, it’s what Newcastle need. West Ham are probably desperate to get him back, he was unbelievable for them. He’s got energy, he gets around the pitch and he’ll get on the end of things and score goals.
“Tarkowski, he’s been in England squads, he’s a good defensive player, strong, quick and a bit of a leader. I’ve always liked Trippier, they’re the players you could get and they’d want to come to Newcastle.
“That’s important. We don’t want players coming to Newcastle just for the money, but players who want to play for this club and play for these fans. If we get those types of players in, we’ll be OK.”
Newcastle face a daunting festive schedule ahead of the January window opening, with clashes against Liverpool, Manchester City and Manchester United on the horizon. Lee (pictured left) believes relegation would be a “disaster” for the new owners’ ambitions on Tyneside, and has backed the consortium to sanction mid-season deals for as many as six players.
He added: “I think the owners will try to bring five or six players in if they can. Whether they’ll all play or not, the owners will try to bring in as much as they can.
“Loans, people coming out of contract, because if Newcastle go down, it’s a disaster. It puts you back two, three, four years.
“The current team now would absolutely murder the Championship because the gulf between the Championship and Premier League is huge. But then it would take a year to get back up and teams like Liverpool and Man United, where we want to be, will have moved on again and will be even further away. “There isn’t enough money to catch up with those sorts of teams. So relegation would put us back a long time. “The club has been neglected for so many years, but the priority is to keep them in the Premier League.”