Newcastle United are reportedly eyeing up a potential move in the January transfer window for Angers and Morocco central midfielder Azzedine Ounahi.

The Lowdown: World Cup breakthrough

Ounahi has seen his profile rise at an alarming rate following his exploits for Morocco at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

He was a mainstay in the side that remarkably went all the way to the semi-finals of the tournament, knocking out European heavyweights Spain and Portugal along the way before eventually losing out 2-0 to reigning world champions France on Wednesday night.

Despite the defeat, Ounahi was hailed as the 'best player on the pitch' by The Evening Standard journalist Simon Collings, as the 22-year-old ranked top of many key metrics for midfielders in the game, including distance covered (11.74km) and line breaks attempted (23).

The Latest: Newcastle interest

Co-writing in his latest piece for 90min, transfer expert Graeme Bailey has revealed that Ounahi's performances at the World Cup have been 'digested' by the St. James' Park outfit, as well as Leicester City, Southampton, West Ham United and Wolves, while Atalanta have also kept an eye on his development.

FC Barcelona, Inter Milan, Juventus, Lyon and PSG have all sent scouts to watch him over the past 12 months, in what looks to be an almighty tussle for his signature in January.

Ounahi is under contract with Angers until 2026, so the Ligue 1 side will be able to demand a premium for him once the window opens.

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The Verdict: Get it done

There will be no better opportunity for the Magpies to snap up Ounahi then in January, as his impressive World Cup performances are likely to attract plenty of interest from some top European clubs in the near future, and Angers, currently bottom of the Ligue 1 table, may be helpless in their attempts to keep him.

Lauded as a 'superstar' by The Guardian journalist Ed Aarons, he has received plenty of plaudits in France at club level as well as for his performances in Qatar, as only PSG and Argentina star Lionel Messi (47) has out-dribbled him (37) in Ligue 1 so far this season, despite his team being bottom of the league and Messi's being at the top.

In fact, Ounahi ranks in the 99th percentile for dribbles completed for all midfielders in Europe's top five leagues in the last year, and is also in the 95th for progressive passes received, 92nd for touches and 88th for total shots per game (FBRef).

Nonetheless, the 22-year-old is shaping up to be one of Europe's best midfielders, and Eddie Howe's side could really take advantage of that.