Newcastle United has had an embarrassment of riches available to them available in this January window. They've made use of it so far, bringing in the likes of Kieran Trippier, Chris Wood, and Brazilian international Bruno Guimaraes, who could be considered their marquee signing so far.
However, there is still time left for Newcastle to get deals done on deadline day, and one signing they look set to complete is Hugo Ekitike from Stade Reims in Ligue 1.
They have been chasing the 19-year-old striker throughout the window and now seem to be moving closer to a deal with a £20.8m deal plus add ons currently on the table for his signature.
There are surface-level comparisons between Newcastle's deal for Ekitike and Manchester United's for Anthony Martial, as a relatively unknown French striker with a reasonable goal tally for his age making a big-money move for the Premier League.
The player is also known for playing in the striker position and on the left-wing, as Martial has done throughout his career. He likes the ball at his feet and dribbles with it often and also is adept at playing one-twos with the players around him to create space.
With Newcastle looking to escape relegation, they will hope that Etikite has a similar instant impact that Martial had under Louis van Gaal at United, where he registered a goal contribution every 175 minutes.
In one way that Ekitike compares to Martial, however, Newcastle must be wary. When you look at FBref's list of similar players, it is all over the place. He is compared to Richarlison, Giovanni Simeone, Raul Jiminez, and Joshua King at the top of the list.
This paints a picture of a player who doesn't quite know what he wants to be, which was the same for Martial at United.
United failed to nail down or utilise Martial in one position for an extended period, and of course, his development stalled. Now he has gone on loan to Sevilla with some fans expecting that he will not return to Old Trafford.
The 19-year-old who broke onto the scene against Liverpool (Newcastle's next fixture is against another Merseyside club in Everton) under Van Gaal seems a long time ago.
Ekitike seems like a top talent, and he may benefit from the fact that Newcastle is at the start of their project and is rebuilding the team from the ground up. Hence, they are likely buying Ekitike with a position in mind and being part of the team for years to come.
But as the team evolves and more players come through the door, they must make sure that they do not make the mistake United did in moving Martial around the pitch to accommodate the marquee names, or history could repeat itself.
How do you think Anthony Martial will fare during his loan with Sevilla? Follow our United On My Mind writer Casey Evans on Twitter and get involved in the discussion in the comment section below.
