The Athletic are reporting that Newcastle will look to bring in up to SIX more signings following Matt Targett’s arrival – although it seems we’ve been quoted some silly prices so far this summer.
Chris Waugh says that we plan to recruit ‘at least one forward’ – one of which is Hugo Ekitike – with a centre-back, winger, central midfielder and goalkeeper also on our wish list; although a move for the latter seems to be lower down Howe’s priority list.
As for the heft prices we’ve been quoted so far, The Athletic reveal that Newcastle officials were left ‘staggered’ by the demands of Man City and Bournemouth after we enquired about moves for Nathan Ake and Lloyd Kelly, respectively, with it suggested a few days ago that the champions wanted £50m for the Dutchman.
Waugh also reveals that Bayer Leverkusen are demanding north of £50m for Moussa Diaby, while Brentford have told Newcastle to pay a similar fee if we wish to land former Mag Ivan Toney.
The report even states that we are ‘surprised’ by how much Benfica have ended up demanding for top target Darwin Nunez. He’s out of our reach – Liverpool, Man United and Atletico Madrid are now battling for his signature – but there’s talk of the Portuguese giants holding out for a fee of £85m.
On the plus side, The Athletic insist that Hugo Ekitike is still expected to become a Newcastle United player despite delays over agent fees and the structure of payments, while we ‘remain hopeful’ Sven Botman will end up at St James’ Park, not the San Siro.
While a deal has been agreed in principle with Reims for Hugo Ekitike, the 19-year-old striker who Newcastle came close to signing five months ago, complications with agent fees and add-ons mean progress has been gradual. The expectation is that Ekitike will become a Newcastle player though, and the club remain hopeful that Sven Botman, the Lille centre-back, will choose Tyneside despite Serie A champions AC Milan pushing for his signature. Botman was another top January target and dialogue has continued.
But Howe also rates Manchester City’s Nathan Ake and AFC Bournemouth’s Lloyd Kelly highly. He took the centre-backs to Dean Court and Newcastle have informally enquired about them both, as they did in January, and are said to have been staggered by the prices quoted.
Moussa Diaby, the Bayer Leverkusen wide forward, meanwhile, is of keen interest, but the Bundesliga club want north of £50 million — as do Brentford for Ivan Toney, the former Newcastle centre-forward. Everton, too, have attempted to rebuff Newcastle’s flirtations with Dominic Calvert-Lewin, the England striker. As for Darwin Nunez, there was an acceptance all along that their top centre-forward target was highly unlikely to move to Tyneside, but even the Uruguayan’s price-tag has been a source of surprise.
Newcastle are willing to be flexible in their approach — some talks have seen them propose creative deal structures, including loans with obligations to buy further down the line, or instalments and significant add-ons — but there is also an acceptance that they cannot dramatically upgrade every position in one summer, which has been reinforced by their feedback from clubs and recruitment officials.
Quality is preferred over quantity, but Howe is also looking for specific characteristics in his signings and, even if Targett does not possess the same creative output as Kieran Trippier does on the other flank, he is reliable and well-liked.
