After Bruno, Newcastle may sign fabulous midfielder Howe wanted in 2015

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When Aston Villa finished bottom of the Premier League in 2015/16, relegated for the first time since 1987, many a supporter laid the blame squarely at the door of the club’s recruitment team. 

It’s funny how perception changes.

Six years ago, the signings of Idrissa Gana Gueye and a trio of Jordans – Amavi, Ayew and Veretout – were being held up as an example of how not to do things in the transfer market. Four young players completely unproven in English football, struggling to make their mark in a team hurtling in the wrong direction. 

Three years after Villa’s relegation, Gueye would join Paris Saint-Germain for a cool £30 million. Amavi was a key part of the Marseille team who finished second in Ligue 1 under Andre Villas-Boas. Ayew is now a regular starter in an exciting Crystal Palace side.

Veretout, meanwhile, has forced his way into the France squad ahead of the 2022 Qatar World Cup on the back of his fine form for Italian giants Roma. 

Will Eddie Howe finally sign Jordan Veretout?

According to Calciomercato, a return to the Premier League is now a real possibility for Veretout. Newcastle United are battling Napoli and Marseille for the midfielder’s £21 million-rated signature.

But Eddie Howe’s interest in the one-time Villa Park benchwarmer is nothing new.  

The Birmingham Mail claim that Howe’s Bournemouth wanted to sign Veretout before he joined Aston Villa in an £8 million deal from Nantes. The Cherries came calling again some 12 months later (Mail).

Clearly, Howe saw something special in Veretout. So much so that he was even ready to hand the Frenchman a second chance in the Premier League, despite a difficult debut season in claret-and-blue. 

Now, just because Veretout has blossomed into a top-class playmaker outside of British soil – he has four goals and nine assists for an inconsistent Roma side this season – that does not mean the Les Bleus schemer is destined to thrive upon a return to England.

Former Everton misfit Nikola Vlasic, for instance, has found life difficult at West Ham despite returning to the UK on the back of a superb spell at CSKA Moscow. 

But Newcastle deserve the benefit of the doubt here.

Veretout, who’s talks over a new contract have stalled at the Stadio Olimpico, could form a thrilling partnership with the similarly silky Bruno Guimaraes as Howe looks to construct a stylish, free-flowing Newcastle side in his cherub-cheeked image.