If Miguel Almiron’s sumptuous volley against Fulham during Saturday’s 4-1 Craven Cottage battering is anything to go by, Moussa Diaby would be wrong to simply assume that a first-team place would immediately be within his grasp should a belated move to Newcastle United come about in the New Year.
Just ask Sven Botman. Newcastle’s £35 million centre-back has started just five out of nine Premier League games since arriving from Lille; Eddie Howe keeping faith with one of his most consistent performers in Dan Burn.
Clearly, Howe does not choose his starting XI based on price-tags alone.
And Almiron, like Burn, will take some dislodging. This, after all, is comfortably his finest start to a season since joining the Magpies from Atlanta United. There have never been any doubts about the Paraguayan’s work-ethic or his threat on the counter. At long last, however, Almiron appears to have found a much-needed ruthless streak; the hitherto missing piece in his jigsaw.
He’s scored three league goals already in 2022/23. More than he managed in the entirety of 2021/22.
So while Newcastle are already putting plans in place to add a new wide forward to Howe’s squad in the January transfer window – with Leverkusen’s Diaby expected to be at the very top of the wishlist once again – it almost goes without saying that the France international would have to perform a damn sight better than he has in recent weeks if he is to consign Almiron to the bench.
Will Bayer Leverkusen’s Moussa Diaby finally join Newcastle United in January?
Diaby has two fewer goals than Almiron this term, despite playing four more games. A ‘dream’ signing or not, per The Athletic, the former PSG whizzkid certainly isn’t performing like a footballer befitting a £60 million price-tag.
And with Ousmane Dembele back to his best, with Randal Kolo Muani flying at Frankfurt, there is a very real chance now that Diaby will be watching the Qatar World Cup from the comfort of his own home. The 23-year-old was left out of Didier Deschamps’ squad for the September international break.
Now, Diaby is not the only Leverkusen player failing to live up to expectations. This is their worst start to a season in 40 years, after all. Under-fire head coach Gerardo Seoane, meanwhile, is reportedly heading for the sack. Former Liverpool playmaker Xabi Alonso is a potential replacement (Fabrizio Romano).
Eddie Howe still wants a forward
But form, as they say, is merely temporary. As Newcastle showed when splashing out a club-record £60 million on Alexander Isak on the back of just six La Liga goals in 32 games for Real Sociedad, they are willing to overlook form in favour of talent and potential. Diaby’s sluggish start to the season is unlikely to diminish Newcastle’s admiration.
And, with Leverkusen slipping further and further away from the German elite, Diaby should be more tempted by the allure of Newcastle’s project now than he ever was over the summer. Especially if he’s denied a seat on the plane to Qatar.
But if Almiron can prove that his current form is more than a flash in the proverbial pan, Newcastle might soon be in a position where they can leave a £60 million France international out of their starting XI.
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