Former Newcastle United and Rafael Benitez target Alassane Plea is being tracked by Barcelona, proving that Mike Ashley might have made a mistake on this one.
With Rafael Benitez not getting backed as he would have hoped as manager, he decided to move on from the club, with Steve Bruce becoming his replacement.
Things are going okay at the moment, but Mike Ashley may be kicking himself when he sees Plea flourishing like he is.
In 2018, Benitez admitted that the Frenchman was one of his main targets after he managed to score 21 times and assist seven for the whole of the 17/18 season while he was at Nice. However, the club were beaten to his signature by Borussia Monchengladbach, and he hasn’t looked back since signing for them.
In his first season for the club, he managed to score 15 goals and assist four. In the Bundesliga so far, he has scored eight and assisted seven from just 22 games, proving to be one of the most exciting players in the entire league, hence why Barca are after the 27-year-old.
Not only has the player got goals and assists to his game, but he has also got versatility, too. The Gladbach forward can play on either flank, as well as down the middle.
German outlet Bild claim that Barcelona made a £46m offer for the forward, which not only proves what standard the player is, but also suggests that Newcastle could have made a big profit on the player after he joined.
Transfermarkt say that the player was bought for £20.7m, so if Newcastle could have got him for the same amount, they would be looking at making around £26m profit.
With Joelinton only scoring one league goal all season while leading the line, Mike Ashley may well now be regretting the fact they spent twice as much on the Brazillian.