Dominik Szoboszlai names Newcastle United midfielder as most difficult opponent he has faced in Premier League

Once upon a time, Newcastle United were seen as favourites in the race for Hungarian international Dominik Szoboszlai.

The former RB Leipzig midfielder had a £60 million release clause that Newcastle were reportedly set to activate, but once Liverpool came on the scene, there was only one winner for Szoboszlai, unfortunately.

The 24-year-old has become a key figure in Liverpool's midfield and played a huge role this season as the Reds romped home to victory as Premier League champions in Arne Slot's first season in charge.

Oh, how different things could have been for Newcastle if we'd beaten Liverpool to the punch.

'He's just a beast' - Dominick Szoboszlai on Joelinton

Indeed, how different things could have been for Dominik Szoboszlai because instead of coming up against Newcastle's midfield beast, who the Hungarian says in the toughest opponent in the Premier League, he would have been teammates.

When asked who he has come up against in the top flight that has proved to be the biggest challenge, Szoboszlai wasted no time in saying Joelinton.

“Joelinton. Beast. He’s just a beast!”

Newcastle are likely to be without Joelinton for the remaining three games

Joelinton has already been described as being like Thanos this season, and when a player like Szoboszlai, who is no pushover himself, touts you as the most challenging player in the League, you know you're doing something right.

Unfortunately, Newcastle look set to be without Thanos for the remainder of the season after being advised to rest his knee after playing through the discomfort this season.

Whether he actually heeds that advice remains to be seen, but we imagine James Bunce will make sure he does what he's told rather than risking aggravating the injury.