Newcastle, Aston Villa to battle Real Madrid and Premier League big-hitters for Bundesliga star

Newcastle United and Aston Villa have joined the race to sign RB Leipzig defender Castello Lukeba, but they face competition for the 21-year-old Bundesliga star from some of Europe’s biggest clubs.

According to CaughtOffside, Manchester City, Chelsea and Real Madrid hold a long-standing interest in the former Lyon centre-back, and now Newcastle and Villa are planning to contact the player’s representatives to assess his openness to a move.

Valued at £60million (€72m/$80.25m), Lukeba made 34 Bundesliga appearances for Leipzig last season following a £28.3m (€34m/$37.9m) move from the Ligue 1 side, standing out as one of the best young defenders in the German top flight.

Newcastle were in the market for a centre-back this summer, but the Magpies failed in their bid to land England international Marc Guehi from Crystal Palace. The St. James’ Park club submitted multiple bids for the 24-year-old former Chelsea man, all of which fell short of the Eagles’ £75m (€88.9m / $99m) valuation, although their final offer was said to have come close to that figure.

In preparation for their first Champions League campaign, Villa forked out close to £150m on new arrivals this past summer, a spending spree headlined by the £50m addition of Amadou Onana from Everton.

The CaughtOffside report suggests that, having sold Dani Olmo to Barcelona for £50m (€60m/$67m) this summer, Leipzig would be reluctant to lose another star player in the near future and would demand that their valuation is met in full if they are to be convinced to part ways with Lukeba.

And with some of the continent’s top sides tracking the one-cap France international, Real Madrid would be the player’s preferred choice if Los Blancos firm up their interest.

However, it is also claimed that of the clubs chasing Lukeba, Chelsea are closest to preparing an official approach.

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Real Madrid interest confirmed

TEAMtalk exclusively revealed on Wednesday that Lukeba is among a list of three central defenders Real Madrid are targeting for next summer.

The 15-time champions of Europe have scouted the Leipzig youngster live on multiple occasions and are aware of what it would take to sign him if they decide to advance for the player.

Nottingham Forest’s impressive 22-year-old Brazilian centre-half Murillo is also named on Madrid’s wish list, alongside Everton’s £70m-rated star Jarrad Branthwaite.

While Villa can offer Champions League football and Newcastle’s pursuit of Guehi has shown their willingness to spend big on defensive reinforcements, the Premier League duo would be unlikely to convince Lukeba to join them in favour of a switch to the Bernabeu in the event Madrid’s interest accelerates.

Gomez alternative for Newcastle and Villa

Lukeba is not the only defender both Newcastle and Aston Villa are eyeing at present. Liverpool‘s Joe Gomez is also being monitored by the pair.

The versatile 27-year-old is yet to feature in the Premier League this season under new Reds boss Arne Slot. According to Football Insider, Newcastle and Villa are ‘keeping tabs’ on the 15-cap England international.

Liverpool signed Gomez in a £3.5m deal from Charlton as an 18-year-old in 2015. A natural centre-back who can also fill in as a full-back on either side, the London-born player has accumulated 226 first-team appearances for the Anfield club, earning winner’s medals in the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup and EFL Cup.

His time with the Reds has been beset by injuries, however, with long stretches lost to a cruciate ligament tear, ankle surgery and a patella tendon issue, among other ailments.

Having made just 42 Premier League starts over the previous four seasons, Gomez was said to be willing to leave Liverpool this summer in search of a regular starting berth elsewhere.

IN FOCUS – how does Lukeba compare to Guehi?

In terms of the duties typically associated with a central defender, Lukeba’s statistics for last season don’t jump off the page.

The 21-year-old averaged 0.78 tackles and 0.48 interceptions per 90 minutes in the Bundesliga, which ranked him in just the first and third percentiles respectively among defenders in Germany’s top flight. His modest output of 1.44 blocks per 90 put him in the 46th percentile and his 3.86 clearances ranked in the 53rd percentile.

Guehi was a little more active in this regard. His 1.25 tackles per 90 put him in the 28th percentile among Premier League defenders, while his 0.8 interceptions ranked in the 22nd percentile. For blocks, he was in the 14th percentile (0.98) and his 3.96 clearances per 90 ranked in the 50th percentile.

It was with the ball at his feet that Lukeba shone brightest, though. The young Frenchman attempted 77.43 passes per 90 (84th percentile) at a completion rate of 91.6 per cent (93rd percentile), while also completing 0.7 successful take-ons (92nd percentile).

Guehi was more conservative on the ball, attempting 58.29 passes per 90 (54th percentile) as a success rate of 86.9 per cent (58th percentile). His 0.31 take-ons per 90 ranked in the 70th percentile among Premier League defenders.

Interestingly, with both players standing 6ft – relatively short for players of their position – they demonstrated a similar weakness aerially.

Lukeba won just 1.31 aerial duels per 90 last season (16th percentile) for a success rate of 54.2 per cent (32nd percentile).

Guehi won 1.29 aerials (22nd percentile among Premier League defenders), winning his duels in the air at a rate of 50 per cent (19th percentile).

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