Newcastle United made it their goal to address a handful of team needs throughout the 2023 Summer Transfer Window. For starters, they brought in a young winger in Yankuba Minteh before snagging forward Harvey Barnes and midfielder Sandro Tonali.
Now, the Magpies have focused on solidifying their defense for the coming season. It was reported on Thursday, August 3, that the team solidified a move for Southampton’s young defender, Tino Livramento.
The move for Livramento was made to support the Magpies’ lackluster defensive efforts on the outside during the 2022-23 Premier League season.
Throughout the majority of the season, the team opted to trot out center-back Dan Burn, who struggled heavily in the agility department, ultimately hindering the ability of the left wing to find any help on the offensive side of things.
For the Magpies, finding help defensively for their wingers has become a focal point for them in recent years. Being able to have a sound defense-to-offense rhythm has been important to Manager Eddie Howe’s system.
However, they finally have been able to address that issue and Livramento should be the catalyst to that.
He has been often regarded as one of the top up-and-coming young defenders in England, but after suffering a gruesome ACL injury in April 2022, his budding career was put on hold.
Thankfully, he did recover well and bounced back when he returned to the pitch.
Throughout the summer, Southampton utilized him in their preseason contests and he showcased solid consistency and mobility on the field. It originally was a concern to many if he would be able to turn that corner after his prior injury, but finding a new home at St. James Park helps to make that return much more strong.
With the Premier League season starting in nine days and Newcastle opening up their season against Aston Villa on August 12, there is a solid chance that he gets his debut start in the season opener.
If he is not given the call to start, expect the Magpies to send out Burn, with Livramento appearing at some point in the outing as a substitute.
When Newcastle made a move for winger Anthony Gordon in the January transfer window, they gave him time to adapt and settle into the lineup, but Livramento should have the go-ahead to have the left-back position to himself.
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The deal for Livramento was settled at a transfer fee of £40 million, which some have considered an overpay for the youngster. However, what do you think? Did the Magpies overpay, or will his high-ceiling make up for the price point?
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