The January transfer window is now open and Newcastle United are on the lookout for new recruits.
While additions from the bargain bin or the loan market are most likely this month, the Magpies' recruitment team will also be on the lookout for new recruits beyond next month as well.
Newcastle boss Steve Bruce is said to be in the market for a midfielder with a bit of bite and energy and United have been linked with a loan move for Leicester midfielder Hamza Choudhury.
With that in mind, we spoke to Can Erdogan, founder of Real Metric Analytics - a Football Analytics product that delivers data-driven scouting and performance solutions to football clubs such as Borussia Dortmund, Fenerbahce, Toulouse, Club Brugge and Rosario Central - to find 10 players with similar characteristics to former Newcastle midfielder Gini Wijnaldum, who ranks near the very top in world football for box to box midfielders.
Real Metric analyse over 250 performance metrics to come up with a 'RMA rating' but they can also use those metrics to find players with similar traits through their 'RMA Similarity Index'.
When Wijnaldum's metrics were ran through the system, these 10 players were suggested as possible transfer alternatives.
Luis Milla (Granada)
Market value: €5,000,000
RMA rating: 7.46
RMA Similarity Index to Wijnaldum: 89%
Milla only joined Granada in the summer from CD Tenerife but has made an immediate impact in La Liga and the Europa League.
The 26-year-old has the highest rating of any player on the list and has an 89% similarity rating to Wijnaldum.
With a market value of just €5,000,000, the Spanish midfielder is the most cost effective midfield option suggested here that Newcastle should target.
Jefferson Lerma (Bournemouth)
Market value: €17,000,000
RMA rating: 6.65
RMA Similarity Index to Wijnaldum: 89%
Lerma already has experience of the Premier League and is a Colombia international.
Bournemouth's record signing remained with the Cherries after their relegation from the Premier League last term and has been integral to Jason Tindall's side's push for promotion this term.
Diadie Samassékou (Hoffenheim)
Market value: €14,000,000
RMA rating: 6.53
RMA Similarity Index to Wijnaldum: 87%
The Mali international is into his second season at Hoffenheim after joining from RB Salzburg and he has established himself as a Bundesliga stalwart.
The 24-year-old, who has been compared to N'Golo Kante, has Champions League and Europa League experience under his belt as well and is improving all the time.
Maximilian Eggestein (Werder Bremen)
Market value: €13,000,000
RMA rating: 6.29
RMA Similarity Index to Wijnaldum: 90%
Eggestein is the joint most similar midfielder to Wijnaldum on the list and has excelled at Bundesliga level for a number of years.
Described as 'Werder Bremen's answer to Toni Kroos', Eggestein has been involved in the German national squad and seems destined for bigger things.
Benjamin Bourigeaud (Rennes)
Market value: €15,000,000
RMA rating: 6.25
RMA Similarity Index to Wijnaldum: 88%
The 26-year-old midfielder has excelled in Ligue 1 and helped Rennes qualify for this season's Champions League last term.
A French Cup winner, Bourigeaud, who can play anywhere across the midfield, has reportedly attracted Premier League interest across the last couple of seasons.
Kerem Demirbay (Bayer Leverkusen)
Market value: €18,000,000
RMA rating: 6.25
RMA Similarity Index to Wijnaldum: 89%
The 27-year-old Germany international joined Bayer from Hoffenheim in 2019 and has Champions League experience under his belt.
His performances this season have propelled Bayer into the Bundesliga title race.
Jairo Riedewald (Crystal Palace)
Market value: €4,500,000
RMA rating: 6.19
RMA Similarity Index to Wijnaldum: 88%
A player Newcastle was linked with back at Ajax, Riedewald has adapted his game from being a central defender to a central midfielder with Crystal Palace.
Still only 24, the Dutch international's current deal at Selhurst Park expires at the end of next season.
Josh Dasilva (Brentford)
Market value: €6,500,000
RMA rating: 6.19
RMA Similarity Index to Wijnaldum: 84%
The 22-year-old dazzled last month as his goal saw Brentford beat Newcastle in the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup.
Dasilva has helped Brentford establish themselves as one of the big forces in the Championship and a future in the Premier League, whether with the Bees or elsewhere, seems inevitable.
Pierre Lees-Melou (Nice)
Market value: €8,000,000
RMA rating: 6.15
RMA Similarity Index to Wijnaldum: 90%
Melou is the joint most similar player to Wijnaldum on the list and he is also one of the cheapest options available.
The 27-year-old has featured in the Europa League and has been a mainstay in a Nice side that challenges at the top end of Ligue 1, since joining the club from Dijon in 2017.
Orel Mangala (Stuttgart)
Market value: €14,000,000
RMA rating: 6.01
RMA Similarity Index to Wijnaldum: 86%
The Belgium under-21 international helped Stuttgart win promotion from Bundesliga 2 last season and has taken to the top flight like a duck to water this term.
The 22-year-old, who is a product of the famous Anderlecht academy, has featured in all but one of VFB's games this season, and has two years remaining on his current deal at the club.
