Trippier transfer fee set to be much lower than first reported & contract clause confirmed – Report

Yesterday, a flurry of reports emerged on Newcastle United’s pursuit of Kieran Trippier, claiming he is closing in on a £30m move to St James’ Park.

This came from TalkSPORT and the Northern Echo, however there was a piece released by The Mail late last night which shared a few potentially telling details.

Here’s a snippet that stood out:

‘Former Tottenham full-back Trippier, who played under Howe at Burnley, has been keen on a return to England for some time though Atletico’s £25m valuation was a stumbling block in the summer amid interest from Manchester United.

‘Sources close to Atletico believe Trippier’s asking price could end up being less than half what they wanted in the summer with his £130,000-per-week contract at the Spanish champions heading into the final six months.‘

So, the previous asking price of £25m could now be cut in half? Should that prove correct, we could end up signing the 31-year-old for a fee in the region of £12.5m.

This seems a far more reasonable fee for a 31-year-old – some on social media felt anything close to £30m was paying way over the odds – however there’s another part of The Mail’s piece which may explain why he could be leaving on the cheap.

Many believe has has 18 months left on his current deal, but The Mail report that he’s actually out of contract next summer, as things stand, insisting he’ll only active a clause that sees his deal extend by a further year if he makes 20 starts for Atletico.

With him currently on 12 starts for the season and pushing to leave in January, next month could be Atletico’s chance to sell up – albeit at a modest fee now he’s nearing the end of his contract.

The report states that he’d become the club’s highest paid player on a huge wage of £150,000-per-week, however that may not seem so costly if he’s set to cost us around £12.5m – not the £30m a few were suggesting just yesterday.