Newcastle Unite have missed out on a deal for teenage midfielder Divine Mukasa, with Man City now expected to sign the England youth international.
As we revealed in an NUFC Blog exclusive back in July, Newcastle were closing in on deals for Trevan Sanusi – who has now signed at St James’ Park – and Mukasa, but our plans to land the latter have been hijacked by the champions.
Mukasa left West Ham at the end of the 2022/23 season after rejecting a new contract, leaving him with plenty of options ahead of a huge next step in his career.
Many on at Newcastle expected the 16-year-old to join Young Lions teammates Trevan Sanusi and Leo Shahar on Tyneside, having played with the pair on several occasions for England’s U16s. However, the midfielder has been tempted by the project on offer at Man City and looks set to join their academy instead.
One youngster who could still end up signing for Newcastle is Kevin Zefi.
The Inter Milan winger held talks with the club over the summer and was expected to sign after serious interest from Dan Ashworth and a glowing reference from current representative and former Toon defender, Stephen Carr.
However, shoulder surgery and a failure to agree the final few details in time meant it’s a deal that will be revisited in January.
The 18-year-old remains keen on a move to Tyneside and is likely to arrive in the new year, where he’d join fellow Irish youth internationals Cathal Heffernan, Alex Murphy and Reece Byrne in the North East.
Zefi’s UEFA Youth League experience could’ve been key ahead of group games against AC Milan, PSG and Borussia Dortmund U19s and added to his appeal, as he played four times in last season’s competition for Inter Milan. It wasn’t to be this summer, but very much remains one to watch heading into 2024.
