Lewis Hall is being pursued by a host of top Premier League sides, with Newcastle United bracing themselves for a battle to keep the 21-year-old full-back this summer.
Newcastle signed Hall from Chelsea back in 2024, with the English defender joining for around £28m with a possible £7m in add-ons after making his loan move permanent.
But with the Magpies at risk of missing out on Champions League football, other clubs such as Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool are lining up to take advantage.
In this article, we’ll cover
Season so far
Hall has made 42 appearances for Newcastle in all competitions this season so far, scoring once and providing two assists.
The 21-year-old takes the most touches of any left-back in the Premier League per 90 minutes, averaging 84.38 touches per 90, which emphasises his involvement in all phases.
Hall averages 2.93 attempted take-ons per 90, ranking third in this metric among left-backs in the Premier League, completing 1.66 take-ons per 90, with only Rayan Ait-Nouri completing more among left-backs.
The Newcastle full-back also wins 2.93 possessions in the middle third per 90, more than any other left-back in the league, while also 2.35 possessions in the defensive third per 90.
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Press resistance
One of Hall’s main assets is his ability to shield, protect and carry the ball through pressure, having the press resistance of a midfield player which largely comes from his academy days, playing in midfield at Cobham.
With more and more teams, especially in the Premier League, opting to go man-for-man across the park, being able to outplay in 1v1 situations is key in all positions and therefore having a full-back who can play under pressure and break the opposition press is a cheat code.
Newcastle utilised this effectively against Barcelona, as Lamine Yamal was the man-for-man matchup against Hall, an incredibly gifted attack-minded player, but someone the Englishman could manipulate with his carries.
Hall is comfortable using all surfaces of the boot to entice pressure and manipulate the ball when dribbling, being agile enough to quickly change direction and power away with large strides.
He also constantly looks to combine with midfielders and his winger in close proximity, looking to utilise bounce passes and give & go actions to create space and take advantage.
1v1 defending
1v1 defending is a key component for any full-back, as they will often find themselves isolated against opposition wingers, even more so now with many teams looking to go man for man.
Hall has played against a number of top quality wingers this season, including Yamal for Barcelona, Antoine Semenyo for Manchester City and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia for Paris Saint-Germain.
The 21-year-old approaches his duels in a controlled manner, looking to close the space between himself and the attacker and delay enough for support to arrive.
When it comes to pressing man-to-man across the pitch, Hall can switch to a more aggressive defending style, looking to keep the opposition facing their own goal, covering larger distances and looking to shift his weight into players more frequently to put them off balance.
Best tactical fit?
Reports are suggesting Arsenal and Chelsea are the most advanced in the race for Hall this summer, which makes sense with Liverpool signing Milos Kerkez only last summer.
Arsenal currently have Riccardo Calafiori, Piero Hincapie and Myles Lewis-Skelly all capable of playing left-back.
Mikel Arteta wants his left-back to operate in all phases, being able to drop deep in the build up as an option, arrive in the pockets to drag the opposition wingers deep and narrow, and then make dynamic runs on either the overlap or underlap to create ideal conditions for the wide men.
Calafiori often adds that spark of chaos down the left flank for Arsenal, looking to combine and make counter movements with the winger to create and outplay in 2v2 situations out wide, which would suit Hall’s game.
Chelsea are also rumoured to be interested in bringing Hall back to the club, with Marc Cucurella and Jorrel Hato the current left-back options.
Liam Rosenior also likes to use his full-backs further forward, whether finding themselves in the pockets close to Cole Palmer between the lines or providing dynamic runs to support the winger.
With how much central access Rosenior likes his side to have, it is important the full-backs can contribute with combination play and carrying quality in central areas, which Hall has in abundance due to his midfield academy days.
Both Chelsea and Arsenal would love to add Hall, but it would likely come down to their other left-back options and the market they have for any potential sale, looking to gather the funds it would take to acquire Newcastle’s young star.