The attraction for Newcastle United is obvious. Harvey Barnes has hit double figures in each of his last three seasons at Leicester City; can hit the ground running given his vast Premier League experience; still has his best years ahead of him at 25; and has already sampled life in every European club competition, including the Champions League.
That first point is most significant. Newcastle may have got frustrated at times against teams that sat in last season, but creating chances was not necessarily the issue. In fact, when Barnes' Leicester side came to St James' in the penultimate game of last season, Newcastle had 23 shots, hit the woodwork three times and had 12 times as many corners yet, somehow, the black-and-whites failed to score in a 0-0 draw.
Newcastle struck the post or crossbar more than any other side in the Premier League (26 times) and, also, missed 69 big chances over the course of the campaign. That is why targeting someone like Barnes makes sense when the winger can score all types of goals - from volleys and well-executed strikes on the counter to tap-ins and scruffy finishes.
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Newcastle also have, potentially, 29 games ahead of them in the opening 140 days of the campaign if Howe's side reach the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup. Newcastle will need depth and goals from across the frontline rather than relying on Callum Wilson, Alexander Isak and Miguel Almiron as they often did last season.
Yes, Newcastle look well-stocked on the left but given how Howe has again talked up Anthony Gordon's 'versatility', as a player who can play on the right and through the middle, the Magpies boss clearly wants extra firepower and further options. Like Gordon, too, Barnes is a player Howe and his staff have followed for some time and an opportunity may have presented itself following Leicester's relegation to the Championship.
As Howe has said, himself, Newcastle have their 'eyes and ears' on teams who have gone down, knowing Barnes would have been even more expensive if Leicester stayed up. It brings back memories of the club's move for former Burnley number one Nick Pope a year ago and that deal won't be a one-off when the club's revenues still lag behind their rivals. As part-owner Jamie Reuben put it, last month, 'our pound has to go further than a Manchester City, a Chelsea or a Liverpool' because of Financial Fair Play restrictions.
This is almost the opposite of the Sandro Tonali situation. Whereas a similar English player to Tonali from another Premier League club would have cost potentially twice as much, Barnes' equivalent in one of Europe's top leagues with similar numbers could command an even bigger fee than the Leicester forward.
However, while Leicester are resigned to Barnes leaving, the Foxes are, historically, tough negotiators. In fact, Leicester even waited until a day before the window closed a year ago to let Wesley Fofana leave despite the club's need for funds to reinvest in the squad. Leicester certainly know the value of their star players and, just last month, the Foxes managed to raise £40m from the sale of James Maddison- even though the attacking midfielder had entered the final year of his contract at a relegated club.
As was the case with Maddison, a year ago, Newcastle have already done their homework on Barnes. What quickly strikes you about Barnes is his hunger, whether it was going out on loan to prove himself at MK Dons, Barnsley and West Brom, or constantly asking his managers through the years what he could do to improve and then, actually, working at it, like he did with his off the ball running or his finishing. Indeed, it is far from a coincidence, that one of Barnes' specialties, like Miguel Almiron, has been a give-and-go finish worked on at Leicester's training ground.
Barnes has also bounced back from setbacks along the way and that mental strength is a trait you find in a lot of Newcastle targets. Barnes suffered a knee injury when he was in the form of his life and could only watch on as Leicester won the FA Cup and England reached the final of the Euros in 2021. It took Barnes time to get back to those levels but, tellingly, the 25-year-old eventually did, enjoying his best ever goal scoring campaign in the top-flight last time out.
You can see why Newcastle like him.
