An update has emerged on Newcastle United and their interest in signing Moussa Diaby during the January transfer window...

What's the talk?

According to the Daily Mail, the Magpies have made a 'fresh' enquiry over the potential availability of the Bayer Leverkusen forward as Dan Ashworth scouts out targets for the final weeks of the month.

The report claims that the club have held a long-term interest in the former Paris Saint-Germain attacker and remains informed on his situation, with Leverkusen possibly needing to cash in on him if they are unable to move on over players before the window slams shut.

Sky Sports reporter Dharmesh Sheth recently claimed that the Bundesliga outfit wanted €100m (£88m) for the winger last summer and has stated that fellow Premier League side Arsenal made contact over a deal for the gem.

Ryan Fraser upgrade

Ashworth could land Eddie Howe a big upgrade on current Newcastle winger Ryan Fraser by beating off competition from the Gunners and securing Diaby's signature.

Miguel Almiron has been the club's go-to option on the right this season and the manager has flickered between Joelinton, Joe Willock, and Allan Saint-Maximin on the left.

Fraser, who can play on both flanks, has made eight appearances in the Premier League and struggled to prove that he is deserving of a place in the squad.

In those eight games, the Scotland international did not produce a single goal or assist and averaged a Sofascore rating of 6.71, after scoring two goals and providing three assists in 27 outings for the Magpies in the 2021/22 campaign.

These statistics show that the 28-year-old has found it difficult to make a significant impact on a regular basis at the top end of the pitch in the English top-flight.

Diaby, who was once praised as being "fearless" by Chronicle editor Aaron Stokes, could come in as a superior alternative to the former Bournemouth man, given his performances for Leverkusen over the last 18 months.

The 23-year-old Frenchman has scored six and assisted three goals - creating 10 'big chances' - in 15 Bundesliga outings whilst averaging a Sofascore rating of 7.21 this season, and plundered 25 direct goal contributions in 32 matches in the German top-flight last term.

Since the start of the 2021/22 campaign, Diaby has created 1.9 chances per game on average in the division and this is far more impressive than Fraser's creative statistics, as the Toon winger has not averaged more than 0.9 key passes per match since 2020/21.

Therefore, Newcastle could land an upgrade on Fraser by securing a deal to sign the Leverkusen forward, due to the dynamo's potential to be a match-winner for Howe with his regular goals and assists from out wide.