Once more we come to another weekend with newspapers looking for something to sell to Newcastle fans. One paper inevitably went for the Andy Carroll angle again, to the collected groans of all Magpies fans, but the most chose to run with the bizarre suggestion that Newcastle would be looking to bring Jamaal Lascelles in from Forest in January. Now, that's not bizarre in itself of course, as Newcastle clearly need more options at centre-half, particularly with Mike Williamson and Steven Taylor both missing games in recent weeks due to minor injuries. What seems most odd is the fact that most reports are suggesting that to bring the young England star to the club, Newcastle will send Taylor the other way. There has already been speculation that Lascelles might be on his way back earlier than anticipated when he was named in the club's Premier League squad in September and fellow Forest signing Karl Darlow wasn't. But the Taylor link is very much new business, to these latest claims from the Express and the Sunday People among others. But why would Newcastle sell a player who played surprisingly well against Leicester, and leave themselves in the same position of having just three centre-backs for the second half of the season? He might not be the greatest Newcastle player, but he is cover, and it would seem completely counter to Mike Ashley's usual practice to go and sign more cover when it's already in the squad. As with most players out on loan from Newcastle, there are already concerns over quite why Lascelles is even at Forest. Stuart Pearce might have been annoyed in the summer that he was on his way out, but he has seemingly responded to suggestions of the player's key status by starting in precisely no games this season. So, it's not like Forest are heavily reliant on the player? Perhaps that means Newcastle might be back up to having four centre-backs in January anyway? The danger of course is that Newcastle fans see Lascelles as the solution to the team's current predicament, and over-hype him before he's ready to transition into the first team. That would be helpful to no-one.
