Newcastle United's summer transfer window has gone off without a hitch thus far, and with the 23/24 Premier League season a matter of days away, Eddie Howe will be confident that he can pick up where his high-flying side left off.
The business conducted has been evenly spread, a calculated and diligent effort to bolster a squad already oiled and refined, with playmaker Sandro Tonali, winger Harvey Barnes and precocious full-back Tino Livramento joining the first-team fold for a combined £125m.
While the Magpies look set to pick up where they left off, technical director Dan Ashworth has been keeping his eye on the market and is believed to be considering a move for a prodigious talent in Florian Wirtz.
What's the latest on Florian Wirtz to Newcastle?
Following news from Spanish sources, Newcastle are keen to convince the young German playmaker to leave Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen and join the exciting project at St. James' Park.
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The exciting talent, aged just 20, would reportedly be available for €80m (£69m), and Howe might be inclined to lodge a formal offer to consolidate the club's resounding return to the Champions League.
Who is Florian Wirtz?
Once described as a "phenomenal" composed presence by teammate Jonathan Tah, Wirtz plays with a swagger and maturity to belie his age, having even received praise for his likeness to a young Lionel Messi by Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso.
This burgeoning 'phenom' certainly looks the part of a first-rate offensive force, having returned from a lengthy ACL injury – so often detrimental for a player in the early phase of their career – to plunder four goals and eight assists from just 19 starting appearances across all competitions last season.
Indeed, as per FBref, the eight-cap Germany international ranks among the top 4% of attacking midfielders and wingers over the past year for assists and shot-creating actions, the top 6% for progressive passes and the top 1% for successful take-ons per 90, earning a comparison through the website's 'similar players' page to new Liverpool signing Dominik Szoboszlai.
Jurgen Klopp's side pulled off the £60m deal to sign Szoboszlai from German Bundesliga side RB Leipzig despite sources such as The Athletic linking Howe's outfit with a move for the Hungarian, and securing Wirtz's signature could prove to be a deal to eclipse the impact of the Reds' new man.
Szoboszlai, lauded as a "generational talent" by journalist Marcel Moeller, clinched 42 direct goal contributions from 91 outings for Die Roten Bullen before making the move to Merseyside this summer, and he brings the offensive fluidity, energy levels and dynamism that Klopp so dearly craved and Newcastle were sold on too.
The 22-year-old ranks among the top 14% of positional peers for assists, the top 9% for shot-creating actions, the top 14% for progressive passes, the top 11% for blocks and the top 13% for clearances per 90, which further highlights the creative prowess that Wirtz also boasts, given the aforementioned comparison.
Newcastle were emphatic in their efforts last season and secured a top-four finish to return to the Champions League after two decades away, and it now signifies a watershed moment for a proud and prestigious outfit that have languished for so long.
The increments are being made and the progress is clear; the Magpies are on an irrevocable rise once more and the opportunity to sign some of Europe's greatest talents is very much within Howe's clutches.
Hailed as the "total package" and an "outstanding technician" by former Germany boss Hansi Flick, Wirtz is an indisputable prodigy and could not only cement his name into the Toon team sheet but prove to be the steal of the summer, making an impact to rival that of Szoboszlai's at Liverpool, who will be desperate to reclaim their place in the Champions League this year.
