---
title: "Newcastle: Magpies enquire about Jason Denayer"
canonical: "https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/newcastle-transfer-enquiry-jason-denayer/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "David Comerford"
section: "Newcastle United"
published: "2022-02-14T20:15:12Z"
modified: "2022-02-14T20:15:12Z"
---

# Newcastle: Magpies enquire about Jason Denayer

**Newcastle United have ‘gathered information’ about Lyon centre-back Jason Denayer, according to Belgian outlet [Het Nieuwsblad](https://www.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/dmf20220211_96895350) (via [Sport Witness](https://sportwitness.co.uk/newcastle-gather-information-signing-potential-free-agent-club-may-struggle-retain-player/)).**

### The lowdown

Denayer will be familiar to British football fans, having had spells at Manchester City, Celtic and indeed Newcastle’s arch-rivals Sunderland earlier in his career.

In 2018, he left Man City permanently to join Lyon in a deal worth [£9m](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/jason-denayer/profil/spieler/277114), but the contract he signed upon his arrival at the Groupama Stadium [expires at the end of the season](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/jason-denayer/profil/spieler/277114).

That means he is currently free to negotiate pre-contract terms with clubs outside of France.

### The latest

The report from [Het Nieuwsblad](https://www.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/dmf20220211_96895350) (via [Sport Witness](https://sportwitness.co.uk/newcastle-gather-information-signing-potential-free-agent-club-may-struggle-retain-player/)) stated that Newcastle have made contact with Denayer’s representatives ahead of the summer transfer window.

The [£18m-rated](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/jason-denayer/profil/spieler/277114) Belgian is ‘spoiled for choice’, with the likes of Barcelona, Juventus and Napoli all expressing their interest, and while he is ‘not in a hurry’ to select his next destination, remaining at Lyon is described as a ‘worst’ case scenario.

### The verdict

What are Denayer’s credentials? He has [33 caps](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/jason-denayer/nationalmannschaft/spieler/277114) for Belgium – the world’s [top-ranked](https://www.fifa.com/fifa-world-ranking/men?dateId=id13554) nation – under his belt, including [two starts](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/jason-denayer/nationalmannschaft/spieler/277114/hauptwettbewerb/EM/verein_id/3382) at last summer’s European Championship.

From a statistical point of view, he stands out for pass completion (ranking in the [98th percentile](https://fbref.com/en/players/47af88b8/Jason-Denayer) when compared to other centre-backs in the top five European leagues), but it’s worth noting that he isn’t the most ambitious on the ball ([20th percentile](https://fbref.com/en/players/47af88b8/Jason-Denayer) for progressive passes). His average of 2.1 blocks per 90 minutes ([88th percentile](https://fbref.com/en/players/47af88b8/Jason-Denayer)) suggests that he is something of a warrior at the back.

In December, he faced off with another [reported Newcastle target](https://theathletic.com/3102859/2022/02/01/newcastles-wild-transfer-window-no-sleep-hundreds-of-targets-howes-nephew-working-backwards-and-signing-fighters/) in the form of Reims’ Hugo Ekitike, who [left him for dead](https://twitter.com/BTLvid/status/1482498861272866828) and scored a last-minute winner in that game. European football expert Alex Barker said that the Belgian [‘got murdered’](https://twitter.com/EuroExpert_/status/1482499815833546757) by the striker, but it seems that one lapse hasn’t put Newcastle off the Lyon defender.

**In other news, [Newcastle are also keen on another centre-back](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/newcastle-united-transfer-rumours/newcastle-nikola-milenkovic-talks-held/)**