Newcastle United are currently third in the Premier League which will surely leave Eddie Howe absolutely delighted with his squad at St James' Park, however, the real test is yet to come in the second half of the season.

As well as competing to retain their spot inside the top four in order to earn Champions League football next season, the Magpies manager will be hoping his team can have a good run in the two domestic cups to earn the club their first trophy in over six decades.

To ensure that Newcastle can rotate comfortably and put out a high-quality squad throughout the remainder of the campaign, Howe could take advantage of the opportunity to acquire the services of more talent in the January transfer window.

One player who has been linked with a move to Tyneside is Bayer Leverkusen star Moussa Diaby, the 23-year-old winger who could become a valuable asset to Newcastle in their pursuit of success in the Premier League and beyond.

Despite Miguel Almiron's incredible goal-scoring form this season, there is no doubt that the powers at St James' Park will be on the hunt for another winger to ensure that quality is maintained on the pitch throughout, especially when they are struggling with injuries or rotating the squad due to congested fixtures.

Diaby has tallied up a huge number of goal contributions over 146 appearances for the German club, scoring 43 goals and registering 41 assists - with a goal contribution every 131 minutes so far.

In the Bundesliga this season, the £59m ace - who was dubbed a "young whirlwind" by Nils Petersen - has scored six goals, delivered three assists and created a whopping 10 chances over 15 appearances, as well as averaging 1.9 key passes, 1.2 shots on target and winning 2.6 duels per game - proving that he is a very creative attacking threat.

In fact, Liverpool star Mohamed Salah is named as the second most comparable player to Diaby according to FBref, and when taking a closer look at their talents there are actually many similarities the two wingers share.

Both Salah and Diaby have six goals and three assists this season, as well as close comparisons in their pass completion rate (75.1% v 75.3%), shot-creating actions per 90 (3.31 v 3.79) and goals per shots on target (0.33 v 0.30).

With that being said, there is no doubt that the signing of Diaby would be a great piece of business for Newcastle and the talented winger could give the team the final push they need to secure Champions League football ahead of next season.