Mohamed Diame has been undergoing his medical this afternoon and social media has been buzzing with the photographic evidence, according to The Shields Gazette.
The tweet which caused the uproar is below:
Me ma just sent is this ??.#NUFC pic.twitter.com/mXVjSysWwp
— Allen (@Allenocon) August 2, 2016
Sky Sports News picked up on the story and it spiralled from there, trending in the UK. It also spawned jokes too crude to repeat here, as well as genuine interest in the progress of the deal.
The real story is that Diame’s transfer is more than column inches. That he is in Newcastle having a medical tells us the deal is close to the finishing line. An announcement could be made as early as this evening.
It’s close to the first match of the season, perhaps too close for a debut at Craven Cottage, certainly in the starting XI. With Hull City also well into their pre-season preparations, we can but hope fitness isn’t an issue.