Newcastle are reportedly targeting a move for James Ward-Prowse in January.
It looks set to be a busy transfer window for the newly-minted Magpies, and the Southampton skipper is said to be on their shopping list.
The midfielder was linked with Aston Villa during the summer, but he ended up putting pen to paper on a new five-year contract in August - not that such a commitment would prove a financial obstacle to the richest club in the Premier League, if not the world.
According to Football Insider, Newcastle will look at the possibility of a deal for Ward-Prowse as part of efforts to strengthen in the middle of the park.
An adept all-rounder, the 26-year-old has won five of his nine England caps this year and was on the cusp of being part of Gareth Southgate's Euro 2020 squad.
But it's his set-piece prowess, with which he's really made his name for the Saints - where he's spent his whole career so far, making over 300 appearances since his debut as a 16-year-old back in 2011.
Ward-Prowse scored four goals directly from free-kicks last season, falling just one shy of the single-campaign record jointly held by David Beckham (obviously) and Laurent Robert - who was a firm favourite with the Toon Army in the early 2000s.
Those were halcyon days under the late Sir Bobby Robson, and the hope- the expectation - in light of the Saudi takeover is that they will return in the very near future - perhaps with the, er, Hampshire Robert in tow...?
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