Newcastle have this evening confirmed the capture of Italian international left-back Davide Santon from Inter for an undisclosed fee.
The 20 year-old arrives at St James’ Park on a five-year deal and has immediately been handed the Magpies’ number three shirt.
For Fantasy Managers, that should immediately ring alarm bells. Santon’s arrival presents a significant threat to Ryan Taylor’s position at left-back having seen the former Wigan man establish himself as an early season favourite.
Taylor scored the winning goal in the North East derby win over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light in Gameweek two and, with 12% ownership (280,000+ owners) in the Fantasy Premier League game, had enjoyed a 0.2 price increase from his initial 4.0 valuation.
Those who were tempted by Taylor’s early season form may have hoped that their man would be set for a sustained run in the starting lineup. Indeed, following his winner at Sunderland, Alan Pardew had suggested that it would be difficult to dislodge Taylor from his starting berth..
“We are trying to bring a left-back in and he is going to have to be a good one to take Ryan out of the team”
But the reality is that Taylor is a right-footed player filling in at left-back – a real short term prospect. Santon, despite being equipped to play either side of defence, has been bought to replace Jose Enrique and Taylor now faces the prospect of dropping to the bench, unless Pardew can find a role in midfield for the set-piece specialist, or consider dropping established starter Danny Simpson on the right.
Santon could now be set to make his debut for the Magpies in what promises to be a tempestuous affair as Newcastle travel to face QPR and Joey Barton on Monday September 12. The new Italian recruit could, theoretically, be facing Barton one-on-one in that fixture – a factor that may convince Pardew to give Santon more time to settle, persevering with Taylor for one more run-out.
One possible knock-on from Taylor’s relegation to the bench, French midfielder Youha Cabaye, who has made an encouraging start to his career at St James’, could now be set for a more prominent role at set-pieces and in particular, direct free-kicks.
