Newcastle United’s Anthony Gordon capped off a long season with a winner’s medal at the U21 European Championship on Saturday.
The Toon winger helped his country to win the tournament as they beat Spain U21s 1-0 in the final in Georgia, with Liverpool’s Curtis Jones scoring the only goal of the match.
Eddie Howe will surely have been paying attention to his attacker’s performances across the competition but other players may have caught his eye in the process.
The Magpies were linked with interest in Manchester City central defender Taylor Harwood-Bellis earlier this summer and the U21 captain was a rock at the back throughout the Euros.
He started five of their six matches, only missing out on their last group-stage clash with Germany, as England managed to end the tournament without conceding a single goal.
PIF must now free up the funds to allow Dan Ashworth and Howe to sign the 21-year-old as he could be the dream heir to Fabian Schar at St. James’ Park in the years to come.
How good is Taylor Harwood-Bellis?
The 21-year-old's performances for club and country over the last nine months suggest that the colossal defender, who is reportedly valued at £15m by City, has the potential to be an excellent player for the Magpies.
He averaged a phenomenal Sofascore rating of 7.26 at the U21 Euros and won an impressive 86% of his ground duels, while also boasting a 90% pass accuracy.
His form for England came off the back of an exceptional season with Burnley in the Championship where the 6 foot 2 ace averaged an impressive Sofascore rating of 7.21 over 32 league appearances for the Clarets and came out on top in 65% of his battles on the ground.
Harwood-Bellis, who his former manager Tony Mowbray claimed has a "warrior mentality", is yet to make his Premier League debut, which means that it remains to be seen whether or not he will be able to translate his form for Burnley and England in the top-flight.
However, the potential is clearly there for an exciting youngster who could be the dream heir to 31-year-old Fabian Schar if he can make the step up.
The Switzerland international averaged a Premier League Sofascore rating of 7.13, which placed him fourth in the squad, and won 62% of his individual ground duels last season.
This indicates that the defensive titan could be an upgrade on the current Toon star if he can replicate his Championship form at the top level.
Schar also ranks above the average for players in his position in the Men's Big Five Leagues and European competitions for progressive passes and progressive carries per 90 over the last 365 days, although he does not crack the top 25% in either statistic.
To put that into context, Harwood-Bellis is among the top 25% of centre-backs across the Men's Next Eight Competitions during the same period for both, while he sits in the top 4% for progressive passes per 90.
This suggests that the towering Englishman is capable of producing consistently excellent and dominant performances at the back while being superb at progressing play through his ability on the ball.
Therefore, the Manchester City prospect would be the perfect player to replace Schar as he has the potential to be a fantastic long-term signing for Newcastle.
