Will Lankshear being monitored for Premier League switch after making England long list

Newcastle scouts watched Lankshear before his injury; the 21-year-old has 13 goals in 13 Championship games and made England's 55-man list.

Lankshear has been a revelation since joining Middlesbrough from Tottenham for £10m, scoring 13 goals in as many Championship games — the best start by a Boro player since George Camsell in 1926. His form earned him a place on England's 55-man squad for the upcoming international break, though an injury prevented him making the final cut and forced him to miss Boro's midweek clash with Wrexham.

Newcastle representatives were among those monitoring the striker at that fixture, with the Magpies keen to add attacking firepower after spending around £180m on forwards since selling Alexander Isak last summer without seeing the desired returns. Boro fans would be unhappy with any move to their North-East rivals, particularly as Kim Hellberg's side push for promotion back to the Premier League for the first time since 2017. Lankshear signed a five-year deal at the Riverside with no buy-back clause for Spurs.