Having struggled to get his targets over the line in his first summer at the helm, Newcastle United sporting director Paul Mitchell is reportedly looking to land his first major coup by beating Real Madrid to an exciting young target.

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The Magpies spent their summer chasing the signature of Marc Guehi, only to see their pursuit end in failure. Transfixed on the Crystal Palace captain, the club failed to consider alternatives and as such have been left short within Eddie Howe’s backline.

Sporting director Mitchell has since spoken about the club’s disastrous summer, telling The Telegraph’s Luke Edwards: “Eddie was very clear and it’s not up to me after seven weeks to say, ‘We’ll do this and that’, because I’m in a supporting role. Were there options? Of course there were, as that’s the responsibility of the department and Newcastle.

“That’s why we ended up where we did. It was that player or he felt he was comfortable with the quality we have. You can be on multiple deals at any one time, the focus doesn’t have to be that narrow.

“We probably were too narrow but, coming in mid-July, it’s not my strategy to control, it’s my strategy to support. But there was no player that he (Howe) wasn’t part of deciding and saying, ‘That’s the guy I want’.”

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Clearly in need of a rethink when it comes to strategy, the sporting director could now make one move in search of doing exactly that. According to iNews, Mitchell is plotting his first proper Newcastle coup by signing Chelsea youngster Josh Acheampong from Chelsea ahead of European giants Real Madrid.

Getting one over on such a club in the transfer market is quite the rarity, representing just how key an achievement it would be for Mitchell and Newcastle.

"Dominant" Acheampong is one for the future

Just 18 years old, Acheampong is one of many young players waiting to break through at Chelsea, but as that long list of names grows every summer, he may be better off turning towards Newcastle and a backline in desperate need of reinforcements. Whilst his best form will come in years to come, the Chelsea academy graduate may well be best-placed to take advantage of the Magpies’ defensive crisis after their summer failure.

The youngster is certainly rated highly too, with analyst Ben Mattinson describing him as a “dominant wide-channel” defender alongside fellow Chelsea gem Ishe Samuels-Smith.

As Mitchell looks to restore some credit with those at St James’ Park, beating Real Madrid to a player who seems destined for great things would be the perfect place to start in 2025. Acheampong would be his first real coup as Newcastle sporting director and perhaps the start of many.