Newcastle United agreed to splash out on a left-back last summer, bringing in Lewis Hall from Chelsea.
The teenager initially arrived on loan, but the deal had an obligation for Newcastle United to buy for £28million providing certain criteria was met.
That criteria was based on where Newcastle United finished in the Premier League table rather than how many games Lewis Hall played, and he is now due to become a permanent Toon player after the Magpies finished high enough in the league.
That is great news based on how Hall finished the season. It was a really tough start to life on Tyneside, but Hall has well and truly found his feet. He ended the campaign extremely strongly, hinting towards a very bright future in black and white.
That will delight Toon officials, who took a risk by signing Hall ahead of someone more experienced.
Journalist ‘convinced’ Newcastle United were going to sign Kieran Tierney
The alternative was Kieran Tierney, who had looked very likely to arrive from Arsenal.
The Scotland international was a major target for Newcastle, but his move to Tyneside broke down when the Magpies decided to do a deal for Hall instead. Tierney went elsewhere, spending the year on loan at Real Sociedad.
Now journalist Charles Watts has reflected on Newcastle’s interest in the £25million man, and has told Caught Offside that he was adamant that the defender was on his way to St James’ Park.
“That was a move that looked certain last summer,” he said.
“I was convinced when the 2022/23 season finished, Tierney would end up at St James’ Park.
“There was a real expectation that the deal would happen, but Newcastle opted to go down a different route and they signed Lewis Hall from Chelsea instead.
“That killed the chances of Tierney going there and I can’t see anything changing this summer when it comes to that potential move.”
Newcastle United now have even more depth at left-back
Tierney is now set to return to Arsenal after the Euros, but is unlikely to have a future there. And 12 months on, there will be no fresh interest from Newcastle, who are well stocked at left-back.
Not only does Hall now look like a solid investment, the Magpies are also bringing in another player who can operate on the left of defence.
Lloyd Kelly will officially become a Newcastle United player on July 1st, arriving on a free transfer from Bournemouth. He is an astute signing, with Kelly capable of playing at centre-back and left-back. He will provide cover in both positions, just like Dan Burn.
With Burn, Kelly and Hall, and even Tino Livramento and Matt Targett, Newcastle have all the options they need at left-back. And that should be the case for a long time, with Hall still only 19-years-old.
If he continues to improve and hits the potential that he has got, the decision to sign him ahead of Kieran Tierney will be looked back on as a stroke of genius.
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