The reasons why Newcastle United try to sign Boubakary Soumare in the January transfer window

The Magpies reportedly agreed a near club-record fee for Boubakary Soumare earlier in the window

The footballing world tends to descend into chaos when transfer deadline day approaches.

Various rumours emerge that are outlandish and wacky in comparison to what would be considered as normal, and this year, nothing seems to have changed.

Among the drama, Steve Bruce revealed that Newcastle United had agreed a near club-record fee for a player earlier in the window, only for him to opt against moving.

ChronicleLive's Lee Ryder later revealed that player was Lille's Boubakary Soumare.

The French midfielder has been linked with Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Spurs in recent months, which suggests that he certainly possesses great quality.

There is reason to believe that Newcastle will attempt to revive the deal in the summer, but who is Soumare, and why do the Magpies have an interest in his services?

Soumare is gifted with excellent technical abilities, but he also has an imposing physique. He stands at six-foot-two, yet demonstrates an element of control and gracefulness when in possession, rather than being awkward and rigid on the ball as is often the case when players are physically built.

The Frenchman is a very modern midfielder in the sense that he's able to combine an impressive athletic capacity with distinct technique.

His first touch is often flawless and progressive, and he tends to see a lot of the ball with plenty of his passes made forwards rather than always opting to play safe. He's also just 20 years-old with room to develop, and his potential ceiling is clearly very high.

Soumare isn't particularly inclined to offer a scoring threat or be a danger in the final third, but he assists greatly in regard to helping his team reach that point of the pitch.

Regarding weaknesses, he doesn't yet offer enough defensively.

Some 48 central midfielders have amassed over 1,000 minutes in Ligue 1 this season, with Soumare placed bottom for defensive duels per 90 which indicates that he's not particularly inclined to engage with opposing players.

It's worth noting that his success rate when he does duel with others is the seventh-best from the group, though. For those reasons, he's best paired alongside an industrious partner so that his flaws are masked.

At Lille, Soumare has played alongside Benjamin Andre mostly, who's 29 years-old and is considerably more defensively active than his partner.

From the same group of 48 central midfielders in Ligue 1, Andre is fourth on the list for defensive duels per 90, and he's first for interceptions per 90. Andre is clearly in the mould of what Soumare requires next to him and interestingly, a player such as Sean Longstaff would fit the criteria.

Ultimately, the approach to sign Soumare appears interesting. He's a player with a high ceiling and the Toon are most likely interested in him because of what he may become rather than what he is right now. He has clear limitations but is just 20 years-old, meaning that if those can be overcome through training and experience over time, he could become fairly complete.

It remains to be seen whether United will revisit the deal but regardless, he's certainly the type of player that the club should be aspiring to acquire.