Newcastle defender Dan Burn losing his place in the side at the expense of Sven Botman would be "harsh", according to Sky Sports reporter Keith Downie.
The Lille ace is on the verge of becoming Eddie Howe's third summer signing, but Downie reckons that his arrival could see Burn dropped.
What's the latest news involving Botman and Burn?
Following months of speculation, The Athletic believe that Newcastle have finally got their man after agreeing a fee with the Ligue 1 outfit for the 22-year-old.
GiveMeSport The Verdict
The report states the Toon Army will pay €37 million plus add-ons, with the Dutchman expected to join Matt Targett and Nick Pope on board at St James' Park.
Being left-footed, though, means his arrival on Tyneside could put Burn's place in the starting line-up under serious threat, with the £10.8m-rated star nailing down his place as Howe's left centre-back following his January arrival.
What did Downie say about Burn?
Despite Botman being someone that Newcastle have chased for several months, Downie reckons that it would be "harsh" for Burn to drop out of the team.
He told GIVEMESPORT: "I have to say, the arrival of Botman does call into question the involvement of Burn next season, because you would have to think Botman, if he does sign, he would be first choice in that back four.
"So, if that was the case, and he came in ahead of Burn, it would be pretty harsh on a guy who was terrific in the second half of the season, he really was impressive."
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Who performed better last season?
According to WhoScored, during his time at Newcastle, Burn (6.98) comfortably outperformed Botman, whose own rating was 6.83 in the French top-flight.
Both players averaged one successful tackle every game but Burn made more interceptions (1.3 – 1) and more blocks (0.9 – 0.8).
Furthermore, Burn particularly excelled when it came to clearances. The 6 ft 6 defender made 6.1 on average every time he took to the pitch, far more than Botman, who made a notable 4.5 every game.
However, while Burn might be impressive when it comes to defending his own box, the Dutch Under-21 ace completed 88.1 per cent of his passes, compared to the ex-Fulham man who managed only 78.3 per cent.
With this in mind, despite his transfer fee, Botman will have to prove in the months ahead that he deserves to be starting ahead of someone who's never let Howe down.