Despite claims of Newcastle’s interest in recent days, Rafa Benitez is understood to have no firm interest in Joe Hart or Hull City midfielder’s Kamil Grosicki and Sam Clucas according to the often reliable George Caulkin of The Times.
The North-East sports correspondent wrote an in-depth and insightful piece in The Times today on Rafa Benitez’s summer so far at Newcastle. We picked up on the following that was said about the above trio of players recently linked with moves to Tyneside:
“As much as Newcastle need players – Benítez has no substantive interest in Manchester City’s Joe Hart, nor in Sam Clucas or Kamil Grosicki of Hull City, who have all been mentioned as potential targets”
With regards to Hart, I imagine he has been offered to Newcastle, and Benitez clearly wants a new goalkeeper this summer, but with Manchester City having no interest in loaning him again, a permanent deal look out of the question given the fee and astronomical wages suggested.
Winger Kamil Grosicki is a player that’s been linked on a few occasions this summer, and is in fact a player I would’ve been happy to sign. He looked at home in the Premier League following his arrival at Hull in January, but the Polish International turns 30 next year and, with that in mind, may only be reconsidered for a knockdown fee.
Fellow Hull City midfielder Sam Clucas is a workhorse and shone under Marco Silva last season, but Newcastle need creativity and quality this summer so seeing this rumour played down can’t be seen as a blow.
