---
title: "Newcastle: James Tarkowski expected to join"
canonical: "https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/newcastle-transfer-news-james-tarkowski-expected-to-join-west-ham/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "David Comerford"
section: "Newcastle United News"
published: "2022-05-14T18:35:44Z"
modified: "2022-05-14T18:35:44Z"
---

# Newcastle: James Tarkowski expected to join

**Burnley defender James Tarkowski is thought to be bound for Newcastle United this summer, [The Daily Mirror’s James Nursey reports](https://twitter.com/JamesNursey/status/1525082265369337859).**

### The lowdown

The centre-back’s Burnley contract is due to expire at the end of the 2021/22 season.

And [The Athletic](https://theathletic.com/3297761/2022/05/10/pogba-eriksen-rudiger-premier-league-free-agents/) recently reported that he definitively ‘will leave’, having ‘made his intentions clear’ to the club hierarchy.

Newcastle did sign a centre-half in January in the form of Brighton’s Dan Burn, who [cost £13million](https://www.skysports.com/transfer/news/12691/12528988/dan-burn-newcastle-sign-brighton-centre-back-in-13m-deal).

[Newcastle news!](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/newcastle-news-6/)

### The latest

Nursey [tweeted on Friday lunchtime](https://twitter.com/JamesNursey/status/1525082265369337859) that West Ham United have chosen to ‘end their interest in free agent’ Tarkowski because ‘they expect him to go to Newcastle’.

[In the attached story](https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/newcastle-transfers-west-ham-tarkowski-26954490), he explains that West Ham are ‘long-term admirers’ of the Englishman, but that Eddie Howe is ‘desperate’ to land a new centre-back this summer.

The Irons have now decided to move onto other targets, with Tarkowski set to secure a significant boost to his £50,000-per-week salary when he joins Newcastle.

\[freshpress-quiz id=”389224″\]

### The verdict

This looks like intelligent business from Newcastle.

Tarkowski is a [£19.8million-rated](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/james-tarkowski/profil/spieler/173504) asset with [192 games of Premier League experience and two caps for England](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/james-tarkowski/leistungsdaten/spieler/173504), and they’re seemingly getting him on a free transfer.

He’s regarded as a ‘top player’ by his former team-mate [Paul Robinson](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/everton-fc-news/everton-james-tarkowski-transfer-gossip/) and ex-manager [Sean Dyche](https://www.countypress.co.uk/sport/national/18884410.sean-dyche-no-problem-top-player-james-tarkowski-contract-admission/).

And he’s simply a monster when it comes to aerial duels, winning [4.4](https://www.sofascore.com/player/james-tarkowski/145188) per game (70%) compared to [3.3](https://www.sofascore.com/player/dan-burn/99090) (66%) for [6 foot 7](https://theathletic.com/3101100/2022/01/31/dan-burn-newcastles-new-6ft-7in-defender-who-is-better-with-his-feet-than-his-head/) defender Burn.

Indeed, according to [WhoScored](https://www.whoscored.com/Regions/252/Tournaments/2/Seasons/8618/Stages/19793/PlayerStatistics/England-Premier-League-2021-2022), only two players in the league – Ivan Toney and Ethan Pinnock – have won more per 90 this season.

Howe reportedly has a budget of less than [£90million](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2022/03/23/newcastle-rule-big-budget-transfers-summer/) at his disposal for the summer window, and this deal will allow him to tick an important box without eating into it.

**In other news, [this man is now ‘set to leave’ SJP in the summer](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/newcastle-united-news/middlesbrough-transfer-news-karl-darlow-premier-league-2/).**