Meet the Newcastle signing who’s a bigger talent than Manzambi

Eddie Howe’s Newcastle United side had to make do with an unsatisfactory 12th spot come the final game of last season and sadly for the Toon, the optimism levels for the upcoming season have already been dented.

Indeed, it looked extremely likely that the Magpies were going to seal the coveted signature of Swiss superstar Johan Manzambi as they sought to find a replacement for the £100m Sandro Tonali.

However, Manzambi decided to relocate to Aston Villa for a massive £59.5m instead. It goes down as a big blow.

Why missing out on Manzambi is a blow for Newcastle

Newcastle needed Manzambi to join to raise the low mood engulfing St James’ Park, with a worry that Bruno Guimaraes could soon follow Tonali out the door this summer.

Instead, it was a case of deja vu, as the Magpies struggled to land one of their main targets, again, just like their failed pursuit of Hugo Ekitike at this point last year, who joined Liverpool over moving to Tyneside.

Landing Manzambi would’ve seen Howe and Co land a talent who is equal parts Tonali and Guimaraes, arguably, as the brand-new Villa number 44 certainly knows where the goal is, like the game-changing Brazilian.

Indeed, a seven-goal campaign for Freiburg last season was then followed up by three goals and two assists at the frantic World Cup.

But, like the £100m Italian, and Guimaraes, he also has the desire to get stuck in built into his wide-ranging game, winning a crazy high 6.6 duels per game last season in the Bundesliga.

Versatile enough to play as a winger, or as a number ten, away from central midfield duties, as well, it had all the makings of being a sensational deal, with Manzambi capable of getting even better with time, as he is just 20 years of age, which is frightening.

Newcastle will need to move on and not be consumed by this deal going awry, though, as they have already agreed a deal for another midfield hotshot who could go on to be a bigger talent than the 16-time Switzerland international if everything goes smoothly.

Newcastle have a bigger talent than Manzambi

In recent years, Newcastle has been a hotbed for exciting young talent to blossom.

Lewis Miley, who is now 20, has ten Premier League contributions next to his name at his boyhood club, having first been introduced into the intimdating first-team picture by Howe at only 17.

When Manzambi was a spritely 17-year-old, he was attempting to cut his teeth in his native Switzerland, before getting his big break at Freiburg in the years that followed.

Fellow youngster Johan Martinez will hope he can be another Miley-style revelation at St James’ Park down the line, as the 17-year-old has agreed to join the Magpies next summer when he turns 18, having stood out as a thrilling youth talent in the U17 ranks at Independiente del Valle.

Why should we be excited about this one? Well, IDV have a habit for producing some of the finest talents to come out of South America. They’ve already produced the likes of Moises Caicedo, Piero Hincapie and Willian Pacho.

As a result, there is a strong belief that Martinez could follow in their footsteps, thus becoming an even bigger talent than the man of the moment in Manzambi.

Despite his tender age, he has already scored for the Ecuador U17s, alongside helping the Independiente del Valle U17s to the Ecuadorian title last year with his standout attacking displays.

Manzambi wouldn’t find the back of the net for the Swiss until he entered the U21 roster, with Martinez ahead of him in his development even more, with it noted by sporting director Ross Wilson that Newcastle “beat off serious competition from leading clubs across Europe” to sign him.

This is all occurring while he is still just a teenager and not a well-established Bundesliga presence like the former Freiburg midfielder, with the levels Martinez could reach terrifying to fathom.

It will be some time before the soon-to-be 18-year-old is unleashed into the senior side, but there is a lot of hype in the air surrounding the Esmeraldas-born attacker, already, with journalist Luke Edwards noting that he is a particularly “exciting” prospect.

Howe’s willingness to utilise youth talent – as seen in the table above – means he could go on to be a memorable first-team star in the years to come, with Newcastle better placed on focusing on getting the very best out of the teenage sensation, over stewing on the disappointment of Manzambi.