Newcastle United have fired the starting gun on their summer recruitment drive by tabling an offer worth between £40-45m for Nottingham Forest winger Anthony Elanga.
The bid was rejected by Forest, who are believed to value the Sweden international closer to £60m, and Newcastle were due to hold a transfer summit on Wednesday to decide on their next move.
The i Paper understands that the club could yet table a second bid in the coming days but do not want to be dragged into transfer sagas this summer.
Newcastle have alternative targets – including Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo and West Ham’s Mohammed Kudus – and are prepared to “move quickly” if they don’t feel that the Elanga move represents value any more.
square FOOTBALL PSR is broken for clubs like Newcastle, Villa and Forest - here's how to fix it
Read More
Sources have told The i Paper that the club are determined not to overpay as they look to finally plug the right winger vacancy that they have been trying to address for 18 months.
Adding in that position is considered a priority, alongside bringing in a centre-back and a forward to replace or challenge Callum Wilson, whose future remains clouded in uncertainty.
Newcastle have also monitored Monaco’s former France under-21 winger Maghnes Akliouche and he would represent a more affordable alternative, but Eddie Howe would ideally prefer a winger with more Premier League experience who would be ready to improve the first XI immediately. Part of Elanga’s appeal is that he has versatility.
There’s a determination inside Newcastle to stick to their valuations – a message that has been sent to the transfer market in successive windows. The Magpies have walked away from other deals they felt were overpriced.
The bid at least answers critics who accused them of dawdling in the transfer market after slow progress in moves for top targets Joao Pedro of Brighton and Burnley’s James Trafford. Newcastle insiders suggest that isn’t an accurate picture, with other targets yet to emerge in the public domain.
But it also highlights how difficult it is going to be for Newcastle to land targets who move them forward decisively at the right price.
Forest indicated to Newcastle in their response to Tuesday morning’s bid that they had no interest in selling and view themselves as potential rivals for Champions League qualification next year. Whether a much-improved bid would move the dial is not clear.
Your next read
square FOOTBALLHow Everton plan to overhaul entire squad: ‘Nobody has done this before’
square FOOTBALLI know who the alleged Premier League rapist is but I can’t tell you their name
square FOOTBALLNewcastle closing in on South Korean boy wonder
square FOOTBALLRashford’s rebels or Man Utd? I know whose version of the truth I believe
If Elanga at £60m is too pricey then it appears unlikely that they will move on to Bournemouth’s Semenyo, another player that Howe is an admirer of.
The i Paper has been told that Semenyo’s valuation is £70m, with the Cherries under no pressure to sell a player who has been the subject of interest from Tottenham.
While Newcastle look to strike deals for first team players, they are also looking to recruit “project” players who can develop at the club.
They are working on a deal for Suwon Bluewings forward Park Seung-soo, with a move for the 18-year-old understood to be advanced. Newcastle hope to make progress before they land in South Korea on tour next month.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Newcastle target three alternatives after £40m Elanga bid rejected )
Also on site :
- Man accused of pointing gun at troopers during I-90 standoff set to be arraigned
- European militarization robbing taxpayers – Lavrov
- Tobey Maguire's 'Spider-Man' Trilogy Returns to Theaters With Rare Extended Cut