Bookmakers make Tottenham as favourites to sign promising Newcastle United midfielder this month

Jonjo Shelvey

Tottenham have been installed joint-favourites with Everton to sign Newcastle United star Jonjo Shelvey in January, according to the latest reports. According to BetVictor, Spurs and Everton are tied in a two-legged race to acquire the signature of the England international. West Ham and Southampton are also thought to be in the running to sign the Newcastle United midfielder.

The Englishman moved to St. James’ Park from Swansea City in January 2016, for a fee believed to be in the region of £12million but has enjoyed mixed fortunes during his time on Tyneside. Shelvey, 25, has been a mainstay of Newcastle’s first-team this season so manager Rafa Benitez may not be willing to let the ex-Liverpool midfielder leave for cheap.

He has made 14 appearances in the Premier League and has made 10 starts but there have been worries about his discipline. Despite being a crucial member of the Toons’ starting XI since arriving from Swansea, Shelvey’s disciplinary issues have forced Benitez to make do without his services on a number of occasions this season.

On the opening day of the season, the midfielder was shown a straight red card for stamping Dele Alli, which resulted in a three-game ban. The six-time England international has also been sidelined recently due to suspension for picking up his second red card of the season against Everton. As a result, there is an outside chance of the player leaving St.James Park, with Benitez already frustrated.

However, it remains to be seen if a move to Spurs is realistic given the plethora of quality midfield options available to manager Mauricio Pochettino. Pochettino boasts the likes of Eric Dier, Dele Alli, Mousa Dembele, Moussa Sissoko and Christian Eriksen as his midfield options, while academy graduate Harry Winks has also impressed for the North Londoners this season.

It would be tough for Victor Wanyama to directly force his way into the first-team after the Kenyan made his comeback to the team with a second-half substitute appearance in Tuesday’s 2-0 win over Swansea after a five-month injury layoff.

Knowing that Spurs’ squad is filled with midfielders, Shelvey could either opt to stay put at Newcastle or decide to go on and play for another Premier League club, provided he gets offers. However, his exit midway through the campaign will be a huge blow to Newcastle though, and it is extremely unlikely that Benitez will actually consider letting his man go for any price of reason whatsoever.