Newcastle United reportedly want to bring Borussia Dortmund coach Lucien Favre to the Premier League – will Ligue 1 star Malang Sarr follow him?
While that £300 million takeover is looking like a case of ‘when’ rather than ‘if’, there is another huge question on the lips of Newcastle United fans everywhere.
Just who on earth will be sitting on the bench when the 2020/21 season kicks off? Steve ‘Geordie’ Bruce looks set to be the first major casualty of a new regime with Max Allegri, Mauricio Pochettino, Luciano Spaletti and Magpies favourite Rafa Benitez all tipped to take the post in various sources.
But the identity of Newcastle’s transfer targets might just offer something of an insight into the short-term planning at St James’ Park.
The North East giants will soon have a billionaire Saudi prince pulling the strings from his ivory tower, though speculation suggests one of Newcastle’s first signings this summer could arrive on Tyneside for absolutely nothing.
The contract of highly-rated Nice defender Malang Sarr will expire in July and, according to Le10 Sport, he has no intention of signing a new one. And it just so happens that the man who handed the 21-year-old his first-team debut in the French Riviera has been tipped to take over at Newcastle too.
Coincidence? Maybe not.
Lucien Favre is on very uncertain footing at Borussia Dortmund and, according to ESPN, the softly-spoken Swiss could be the man to lead Newcastle into a bright new era. He wanted the job in 2015 (The Chronicle) and Favre’s penchant for pushing a stalling ship in the right direction might just make him the perfect fit for an ambitious Magpies side.
“Malang Sarr scoring his first Ligue 1 goal in his first match was the icing on the cake. He’s got a lot of potential and much room for improvement,” Favre told Fox in 2016 after Sarr scored the winner against Rennes in a Ligue 1 clash.
Is a reunion on the cards?
Well, if Newcastle are really looking at Favre, it would make sense that they would be trying to sign one of his favourite players too.
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