Earlier today, Marco Rose confirmed that Newcastle and Aston Villa target Axel Witsel will be leaving Borussia Dortmund on Saturday.
The Bundesliga side’s manager praised the out-of-contract Belgian when announcing his exit, describing the midfielder as a “huge player” when speaking to the media.
As quoted by Foot Mercato, Rose said: “Axel Witsel is a huge player. He played a lot of important games for us. Nevertheless, we have decided not to extend his contract. We will also say goodbye to him on Saturday.”
Now, with the Premier League campaign coming to an end, we believe this news will be of interest to Eddie Howe and Steven Gerrard.
What’s the story?
Well, it has been said that the Magpies and the Villans are interested in signing Witsel, which comes as no surprise to us.
The 33-year-old has made 40 appearances in all competitions this season, scoring two goals, and seems to be getting better with age.
Witsel has also amassed 120 caps for Belgium, which puts him second in his country’s list of all-time appearance makers behind Jan Vertonghen.
The defensive midfielder – who can also operate at centre-back – is a quality player who boasts great experience, and in our view, he’s among the best free agents out there this summer.
Axel Witsel should choose Newcastle over Aston Villa
In our view, Witsel – who Borussia Dortmund paid £18m for – should choose Howe over Gerrard if it comes down to a two-horse race this summer.
At St James’ Park, the Liège-born maestro would be paired alongside Bruno Guimaraes in midfield, a duo which wouldn’t look out of place in the Champions League.
More exciting additions are expected to be made by Newcastle, such as the likes of Victor Osimhen, Darwin Nunez, Bernd Leno and Kalvin Phillips.
If the Magpies can secure a few stellar names such as the above, then Tyneside would represent an exciting step for Witsel in the latter stages of his career.
Keep an eye on the situation, as anything could happen this summer.
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