A French top-flight title-winning centre-back making a move to Newcastle United - it sounds familiar, doesn't it? A trip back to 2013 will throw up the name of Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa who moved to Tyneside in the winter window but lasted a little over 18 months before being shipped out.
Yanga-Mbiwa had captained Montpellier to the Ligue 1 title in 2011/12 and had built up a reputation as one of the best young central defenders in Europe. Just months before his move to Newcastle, the centre-back had gone on record to speak about links to some of Europe's top clubs such as Barcelona.
It's not too dissimilar to that of Sven Botman - Newcastle's latest signing. Botman helped Lille upset the odds as he played a crucial role in their title win of 2020/21. His performances quickly caught the eye of many scouts around the world - including Newcastle.
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The Magpies fought off some tough competition for Yanga-Mbiwa, who, like Botman, was 22 when he moved to St James' Park. Yanga-Mbiwa struggled to settle and made only 37 appearances before joining up on loan with AS Roma, who he later signed for permanently.
Injuries and the fact Alan Pardew often played him out of position, didn't help Yanga-Mbiwa. So what is different this time? Well, Botman comes in as a towering centre-back and will be played there by Eddie Howe.
But more than that, French Football Expert Jonathan Johnson who works for CBS, feels Botman has more than enough experience to avoid a similar outcome at Newcastle to that of Yanga-Mbwia. Speaking on The Everything is Black and White Podcast, Johnson said: "One thing I would say about Yanga-Mbiwa is that he was definitely a talented player who had a lot of potential but ultimately didn't tap into a lot of that potential mainly because he had a lot of physical problems and picked up injuries.
"Obviously, his time in the Premier League didn't go particularly well and there are some players who struggle culturally - talented players who could have done something. Not everybody can be like a Cabaye or a Sissoko where they blend in or a Saint-Maximin for that matter but I don't think that means that Newcastle were wrong to look at him.
"There is a big difference between Botman and Yanga-Mbiwa as well, in that Yanga-Mbiwa had never been outside of France until the moment that he joined Newcastle, whereas Botman has already experienced two countries. Also in the Netherlands, obviously he'll speak Dutch but a lot of them speak English as well.
"So culturally, like fitting in, I think it will be a lot easier for Botman with his teammates but also getting to know the local area as well. Then again, when Yanga-Mbiwa joined there was a big French contingent but sometimes I think when you build up a big number of different nationalities, sometimes it can work against you in terms of chemistry."
Newcastle beat AC Milan to the signature of Botman - the centre-back who topped their shopping list back in January. The club in their initial statement regarding the deal made it clear they 'held off competition from a host of European sides.'
Talking about the size of the move, Johnson added: "It is a big deal. It's a statement given the number of high-profile clubs that were chasing after him.
"It was one which Newcastle had to wait a while for - there was a lot of toing and froing with Lille before they ultimately caved in and agreed to the deal.
"It's the right move now for Botman. In hindsight, he may feel he could have moved on sooner given the way Lille's season played out as it wasn't the season people expected and bar their Champions League run, nothing has pushed Botman on really.
"Lille could have cashed in, to a greater extent, had they sold him 12 months earlier but I don't think that would have set Botman back too much in terms of his development. This is a coup for Newcastle and a good way to get the transfer window underway."
You can listen to the full episode of 'Introducing Sven Botman' by clicking here. This will take you through your podcast provider.
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