Newcastle United are set to announce their first signing of the transfer window as Nabil Bentaleb underwent a medical on Tyneside today.
Steve Bruce is desperate for reinforcements to help push his team over the line to avoid the drop.
Bentaleb was not a name mentioned as someone the club were looking at or even that area to bolster, however, he seems like a key addition to Bruce's side.
He will sign on an initial loan until the end of the season with an option to buy if the Magpies wish to activate that clause.
What is his style of play like?
During his spell at Tottenham, Hotspur Bentaleb was a combative midfield that covered a tremendous amount of ground.
He was given his chance under Tim Sherwood and flourished after making 46 appearances for Spurs he developed his game and was able to adapt to a number of roles.
He was deployed as a holding midfielder as well as in a number 10 position when required which as seen his eye for a killer pass improve.
However, his main quality is his engine and willingness to run himself into the ground for his side.
His smart passing and eye for a pass are what will appeal to Bruce as he has a mixture of Isaac Hayden and Jonjo Shelvey in him.
He is able to keep the play simple and tidy as well as pinging that killer pass but also has that robust nature to get in the face of the opposition and frustrate them.
Time in Schalke
It started off well for Bentaleb, initially joining on loan in August 2016 before making it permanent in February 2017.
He managed eight goals last season for Schalke as he attracted interest from Spain and back in England.
Bentaleb helped Schalke finish runners up in the Bundesliga to Bayern Munich, however, since then it has not been as good for the Algerian.
Since Domenico Tadescco was sacked (the manager who bought Bentaleb) the midfielder has not been shown the same faith.
Huub Stevens took over as caretaker manager and has spent his whole managing career in Germany meaning he adopted the traditional Germany view on football.
Therefore, Bentaleb's robust style of play did not fit into Stevens' disciplined style of play and thus demoted to Schalke's B team.
He was demoted due to apparent disciplinary issues as he picked up 41 yellow cards and two red cards in 192 appearances for the German side.
Since former Huddersfield Town manager David Wagner took charge he has promoted Bentaleb to the first team for a month and then straight back to the B team as he clearly does not rate the Algerian.
What will he bring to Bruce's side
He will bring determination and composure in the second half of the season which will be key for the Magpies finishing as far away from the relegation zone as possible.
He will provide competition to every midfielder which has seen some lacklustre performances recently.
Shelvey and Sean Longstaff have not performed to their maximum in recent weeks which has allowed Newcastle to be dominated for large portions of games.
Bentaleb will not rest on his laurels as he will be playing for a permanent deal and another chance to play in the Premier League.
The Algerian could operate in a holding midfielder role when Bruce plays three central midfielders and then offer support to Joelinton when playing against sides they could beat.
Bentaleb moving to Newcastle seems like a very useful signing for everyone involved as he gets playing time and Newcastle get a top midfielder to bolster their engine room.