Joelinton and Bruno Guimaraes may soon have a third Brazilian international midfielder joining them on Tyneside – according to reports in Italy, at least.

There may be a shake-up in the midfield this summer, with Sean Longstaff tipped to move on and Joe Willock facing an uncertain future as we prepare for a return to European football.

It will be a pivotal window in the PIF project after a lack of signing since 2023, and a former Premier League player currently playing in Serie A has been linked once again.

Juventus midfielder linked again

According to reports in Italy, Newcastle are showing interest in Juventus’ Douglas Luiz.

Tuttosport claim that Newcastle believe a ‘good deal’ could be on offer to bring the former Aston Villa midfielder back to the Premier League after a frustrating spell in Turin.

The 27-year-old has had difficulty securing regular game time in Italy and is believed to be irritated watching from the bench during a season in which Juve have struggled.

Man Utd and Nottingham Forest have also been linked, however, but a cut-price deal or potential loan-to-buy has been suggested for a player who was reluctantly sold by Aston Villa last summer to ease their PSR concerns.

Midfield depth must improve

Newcastle’s higher ups need to be thinking about adding greater depth to our midfield rankings if they want us wanting to compete on multiple fronts next term.

Eddie Howe’s favoured three of Bruno Guimaraes, Sandro Tonali and Joelinton are more than capable of competing against anyone when fully fit. However, we are competing on four competitions next season and the drop off in quality is very clear.

The Joe Willock we have seen this season is a far cry from what we saw when he arrived for the latter half of 2021. After struggling with injuries, his form has been poor this campaign and a run in the side hindered by another muscle issue that ruled him out of Sunday’s win over Chelsea.

Lewis Miley’s potential is obvious and the lad from Stanley is capable of deputising in the midfield despite his young age. At just 18-years-old though, Miley can’t be relied upon too much but will be pushing for minutes in 2025/26.

Sean Longstaff is entering the final year of his contract imminently and reports suggest he will be sold for around £12m this summer with Everton, Leeds and Manchester United believed to be monitoring the situation.

That would leave just five first-team players who are natural central midfielders. That simply can’t be allowed to happen and reinforcements are necessary ASAP.