West Ham have once again been linked with a move for Newcastle midfielder Jonjo Shelvey, but now our efforts have been given a major boost as TransferMarketWeb are claiming that Maximillian Arnold has been identified as the Englishman’s successor.
It is being reported that the Magpies are becoming more and more interested in taking the Wolfsburg man in the summer, should the 6-cap Three Lions international leave St James’ Park.
The Sun have previously suggested that a £20million move to the London Stadium is on the cards for Shelvey after the 27-year-old fell to fifth in Rafa Benitez’s midfield pecking order.
A move to East London was even mooted in the January window, but the Spaniard decided against sanctioning his exit during the season.
If the growing speculation that we are in the hunt for Shelvey’s services is true, there are arguments for and against his signing. While he would be a top deep-lying playmaker, he would not suit the 4-1-4-1 that Manuel Pellegrini currently favours, without disrupting Declan Rice’s game.
The Newcastle ace has not got the legs to be a driving force through the middle like the formation requires, and he would instead slow play down in Stratford as he waits on the likes of Felipe Anderson to make runs down the wings before spreading the play.
