'Without a doubt': Eddie Howe agrees that 32-year-old Newcastle United man has been on of his best signings

During Eddie Howe's first transfer window in charge of Newcastle United the PIF allowed the gaffer to splash the cash in order to get the side out of the hole they were in with relegation almost certain.

That January Howe added Kieran Trippier, Dan Burn, Bruno Guimaraes, Matt Targett and Chris Wood and each of them played a massive part in clawing Newcastle out of the danger zone into an eventual 11th place finish.

While Kieran Trippier and Bruno Guimaraes would go on to grab all the headlines, as Bruno has continued to do, the other three were also monumental that season, but Chris Wood was eventually sold on and Matt Targett, despite earning a permanent switch after joining on loan initially, has hardly been seen since.

Dan Burn, however, has been an almost constant presence in the starting lineup, covering admirably at left-back during Newcastle's Champions League qualifying season but tailing off the season after, before being moved back to his more comfortable centre-back spot.

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Eddie Howe has admitted that Dan Burn is one of his best signings

Moving Burn back to the position in which he's more familiar has paid dividends and this season, Burn is up there in our thinking of Player of the Season as things stand.

When facing the media this morning (via The Chronicle) ahead of tomorrow's meeting with Tottenham, Eddie Howe was asked if Burn falls into the 'best signing' category.

"Without a doubt [is he one of your best signings?], he's been incredible. He's been even better than I thought he would be. We knew he was talented and would be a difference maker for us with his stature and size. But when you add the leadership skills and consistency, he's been a tower of strength in the dressing room. He's been fundamentally important."

Dan Burn may face a new challenge at Spurs

We gave Burn a lot of grief when he was out in that left-back role last season, getting absolutely obliterated for pace by wingers week-in and week-out, but now we can't praise him enough.

This season he has made some crucial last ditch tackles as well as a few goal-line blocks. He's been an absolute rock at the back, and his coolness on the ball has helped massively too.

Tomorrow could be another challenge for the Blyth-born giant, however, as we expect Eddie Howe will move him over to the right side of centre to cover for the suspended Fabian Schar. Let's hope the slight positional change doesn't throw off his game too much.