Former Mag on offer for £21m – A no-brainer should Newcastle’s budget allow it?

Although Paul Mitchell has suggested we will only make one or two high-profile signings this window, with a new right winger and centre-back being the presumed main targets, I can’t feel there is still a gap that needs to be filled in our midfield for the upcoming season.

After an injury-hit campaign saw us routinely start 17-year-old Lewis Miley – who is injured again – in the centre of the park, along with the forced loss of regular starter Elliott Anderson, it’s fair to say Newcastle would be wise to sign another central midfielder, and not just hope for more luck when it comes to injuries now Joe Willock and Joelinton are back from long-term injury issues.

Should the budget permit it, I couldn’t think of a better signing for this role than the return of former magpie Mikel Merino, with rumours circulating of his availability at around €25 million (£21 million) this summer.

Merino will almost certainly be in very high demand following his victorious Euro 2024 campaign, in which he certainly had his moment in the spotlight, scoring a 119th-minute winner to knock hosts Germany out of the competition in the quarter-final.

There’s an argument of where would he fit now Sandro Tonali has returned and Joelinton is fit again, but we lack a natural No.6 behind Bruno Guimaraes and he may believe he has unfinished business in England. It would be ambitious and unlikely, but for Newcastle to break the ‘big six’ and force our way back into the Champions League, we need strength in depth.

Merino’s career successes will not surprise many in our fanbase, as he almost instantly became a fan favourite following his arrival from Dortmund in 2017. An instant mainstay in our midfield, Merino’s original loan deal was quickly made permanent as he established himself as arguably our standout player in our poor start to the 17/18 season.

Following a brief spell out injured going into the second half of the season, with Mo Diame taking Mikel’s role in the centre of the park, Newcastle finally gained some much-needed league form. Diame, who had previously been rather poor for the club, seemingly turned into prime Patrick Viera overnight, and his partnership with an equally in-form Jonjo Shelvey kept Merino out of the starting 11 upon his return. Unwilling to wait to return to the first team and struggling with on and off back issues, Merino signed for Sociedad for a very cut-price £11 million release clause.

As interest in Merino heats up, With Arsenal rumoured to be lining up a bid, a Newcastle offer for Merino would be almost unanimously welcomed by our fanbase, given his current status as the one who got away.

If the rumoured £21 million price tag is true, it’s an undeniable bargain. Given the positive light in which Merino has discussed his time at Newcastle, as well as the leaps we have made since his time at the club, it is possible he would be open to a return should we make an offer.