A push for Champions League football will be the priority for Eddie Howe and his Newcastle United side in the second half of the Premier League season.

The Magpies are currently in sixth place in the table, two points adrift of Chelsea in fourth place. They are also on the same points as fifth place Man City, with a possibility of fifth being enough to qualify for Europe’s elite competition at the end of the season. A 4-1 loss against Bournemouth in their last outing was a blow to Newcastle. But they will be aiming to get back to winning wats when they take on Southampton at St Mary’s Stadium on Saturday (3pm kick-off).

While the football is going on, in the background is the January transfer window. Teams are able to buy and sell until Monday, 3 February as they look to shape their squad. With just under two weeks remaining, ChronicleLive has taken a look at some of the business that could and should be done over the next couple of weeks.

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Jonathan David signs

Lille forward Jonathan David is one of the names being talked about around Newcastle over the last few days. The Canada international’s form for the French side has not gone unnoticed by clubs, especially when he’s out of contract at the end of the season, and therefore available on a free transfer.

His contract situation means that he’s able to speak to overseas clubs and agree a pre-contract. That would be the ideal scenario for Eddie Howe, if they can get in early and get him to agree to a summer move before anyone else, then it would be a massive boost ahead of the summer. The fact he’s available on a free transfer would also mean that it would not have as much impact on the budget in terms of the Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSRs) as a paid for signing would.

Two exits

Both defender Lloyd Kelly and winger Miguel Almiron have both been linked with moves away from St James’ Park this month. A permanent sale of both would be a boost in terms of PSR ahead of the summer window. Both have struggled for regular starts so far this season with the two as unused substitutes in last weekend’s loss against Bournemouth. Almiron looks set for a return to the MLS with Atlanta United, the club he joined from.

The transfer will earn Newcastle a fee of $12 million (£10m). Newcastle also have interest in Kelly, they have turned down a bid of €13 million (£11m) from Fenerbahce, and have interest from Juventus. However, the Italian side are currently looking at a loan deal with an obligation to buy. That is not likely to suit Newcastle. A sale should however be made if they can get a fee of £20-25m with the majority paid up front. If both sales do go through then it would boost the club’s transfer budget for the summer window.

One replacement

The problem with sales for Howe could be how thin it would leave his squad for the second half of the season. The club therefore should look to bring in a replacement for at least one of them. Howe described the situation around Almiron as ‘not ideal’ last week. The attacking area of the pitch is probably the most in need, given fitness concerns over Callum Wilson, Joe Willock and Harvey Barnes.

While Bryan Mbeumo would be the ideal signing, he is likely to be too expensive, and maybe one to look at in the summer. The best solution could possibly lie in a loan deal. If Newcastle are able to completed a temporary deal for a wide attacker, then it would go a long way to easing the concern of cashing in on Almiron.