Newcastle United reportedly want to sign Hakan Calhanoglu from Serie A giants AC Milan; can he get back to his Bundesliga best on Tyneside?
Borussia Dortmund didn’t even have a wall in place. That’s how confident that were, when Hakan Calhanoglu lined up an opportunistic free-kick from just outside the centre-circle, that there was absolutely nothing to worry about.
Seconds later, the ball was flying into the back of Roman Weidenfeller’s net, the Dortmund goalkeeper left shell-shocked by a bomb of a shot which saw Hamburg’s young Turk establish himself as the most fearsome set-piece taker in the game.
Even Jurgen Klopp, one of the most animated coaches in the game, was nothing more than a stunned statue as Calhanoglu’s 50-yard rocket put Hamburg 3-0 up against the Bundesliga giants. Then again, it’s not every day you see a goal like this.
According to the Chronicle, Klopp could be suffering from some rather nasty flashbacks some time soon with Newcastle lining up a deal to bring the German-born 26-year-old to the Premier League this summer.
The report claims that the Magpies have scouted Calhanoglu ‘extensively’ in recent months. And, while he has never really lived up to expectations during his three-year spell at AC Milan, this £23 million play-maker still has something rather special in his locker.
As every Newcastle fan will tell you, a player with his ability to produce something rather special out of very little would be more than welcome on Tyneside.
Watching Steve Bruce’s team in action has been about as enjoyable as slowly inserting drawing pins into your retinas at times this season, but Calhanoglu’s arrival would at least give this put-upon fan base a reason to get out of their seats for all the right reasons.
If Newcastle are the epitome of safe, anodyne pragmatism right now, Calhanoglu represents something very different.
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