An update has emerged on Newcastle United's interest in Bournemouth beast Lloyd Kelly...

What's the talk?

According to the Sunday Mirror, via TEAMtalk, the Magpies are keen on a deal to sign the central defender at the end of the season.

The report claims that they will make a move for him if the Cherries fail in their bid to win promotion back to the Premier League.

Forget Clark

Ciaran Clark was recently axed from the club's 25-man top-flight squad for the rest of the season and Eddie Howe must replace him in the summer by securing a deal to sign Kelly, who he previously signed for Bournemouth.

The Irish Magpies defender has been abysmal this season and it is time to forget about him and start thinking about the heroes of tomorrow. Clark averaged a SofaScore rating of 6.29 in the first half of the campaign, showing that he is far from good enough at this level.

Kelly, meanwhile, has been catching the eye in the Championship. He has averaged a SofaScore rating of 7.06 in the second-tier, helping his side to keep an impressive 12 clean sheets in 22 starts.

Ex-Cherries boss Jonathan Woodgate previously lauded the central defender, saying:

"He’s got talent. He’s got a lot of attributes which Premier League teams look at. But he needs to be consistent week in, week out now.

"At the minute he just looks like a bit of a Rolls-Royce doesn’t he? He looked very, very good (against Bristol City).

"I was impressed to be honest with you, especially when (Antoine) Semenyo tried to run him down the line and Semenyo gave him two yards and Lloydy overtook him. It’s eye-catching when things like that happen, especially as a fellow defender. When you see things like that, it’s like ‘you’ve got a bit’."

These comments suggest that he has the physical qualities to make the step up to the top-flight, whilst his aforementioned statistics in the Championship show that he is now delivering consistent performances. He is showing that he can be a quality defender week-in-week-out in the second tier and Howe must now secure a deal to bring him to Tyneside.

Kelly could be an excellent addition to the side if he is able to adapt to top-flight football and has plenty of room for further development at the age of 23. He could, therefore, be a signing for the here and now and for the future with his potential to improve.

AND in other news, PIF masterclass: Craig Hope delivers exciting NUFC claim that'll leave Howe delighted...