Newcastle United closing in on second major transfer

Newcastle United fans were given a pleasant surprise when the club completed a permanent move for Matt Targett. Rumours over the past few weeks had been suggesting that the move might not happen despite the left-back’s brilliant performances while on loan from Aston Villa. Instead, the Magpies were linked with several other players in the position. Fortunately, that did not turn out to be the case and now, he is expected to remain at St James’ Park for the foreseeable future.

The focus will now have to move towards other positions on the pitch though and it looks like Eddie Howe wants to bring another centre-back to the club, after the success that Dan Burn has enjoyed.

One player that Newcastle United have been linked with for a long time is Sven Botman and now, finally it looks like they are making some progress.

As reported by The Telegraph, Newcastle United are closing in on Botman. Sources have indicated that the Magpies are close to breaking through in their pursuit of the Dutch centre-back following negotiations with Lille.

Newcastle United are closing in on major transfer breakthrough

For the longest time, it had looked like Botman was headed for AC Milan and was even believed to have agreed personal terms with the Italian champions. But now, it looks like there has been a twist in the transfer race.

Signing someone like Botman could be a huge boost for Newcastle United. The Dutchman has already proven himself as a centre-back of a league-winning team, with Lille lifting the Ligue 1 title in the 2020/21 campaign.

On top of that, he is still just 22 years of age and would be expected to get much better as he gains more experience. It is believed that a transfer fee around €45 million could be enough to sign him from Lille this summer.