Newcastle United are admirers of midfielder Antonin Barak, according to Italian newspaper L'Arena (via Tutto Hellas Verona).

The lowdown

Predominantly an attacking midfielder, the 26-year-old has started every league game for Hellas Verona so far this season (via WhoScored). He has scored four goals, provided two assists and averaged a rating of just over seven out of 10.

Barak was part of the Czech Republic's squad for last summer's European Championship, featuring three times for Jaroslav Silhavy's side, who were knocked out in the quarter-finals. Earlier this year, he was hailed as 'tremendous' by Italian journalist Maxi Angelo.

The latest

The report from L'Arena (via Tutto Hellas Verona) states that Newcastle and West Ham have both 'set their sights' on Barak.

The midfielder is apparently valued at least €25m, which equates to about £21.1m.

The verdict

When he was at Bournemouth, Eddie Howe favoured a '4-4-2 double 6' formation. That kind of shape wouldn't appear to accommodate an attacking midfielder like Barak.

There's no guarantee that the 43-year-old sticks with the same system on Tyneside, of course, and he might be willing to adjust his set-up depending on who Newcastle recruit midway through the season.

It could be difficult to compete with West Ham, though, given that they already have a healthy Czech contingent (Tomas Soucek, Vladimir Coufal and Alex Kral) who could look to persuade Barak, as well as being able to offer European football instantly.

In other news, Frank McAvennie has backed this mooted NUFC transfer