Newcastle’s transfer hammer blow confirmed as president confirms centre-back transfer is off
Newcastle’s transfer hammer blow confirmed as president confirms centre-back transfer is off
Newcastle target a new defender
A centre-back has been high on the Newcastle wishlist, and it is easy to see why. The club have conceded 43 goals so far this campaign, which stands them very much in relegation form.
Only Newcastle United.
What £25m for a 30-year-old long-ball-game centre-forward and a €25m offer for Diego Carlos says about the Saudi club’s recruitment team. https://t.co/EHIhKnCo24https://t.co/JuwoA9tPH2
— Duncan Castles (@DuncanCastles) January 16, 2022
At present, a 25 million euro bid for Sevilla’s Diego Carlos is the closest that the Magpies seem to be to finding a new defender, and now they have been dealt news that they were expecting on another.
Door on Botman firmly closed
And, what was feared has indeed become reality, as Newcastle are going to miss out on their no.1 target at centre-back.
David Ornstein reported last week that it seemed “all but off”.
🚨 Newcastle pursuit of Sven Botman looks all-but over. Lille refusing to consider sale so #NUFC turning focus to other candidates. Dutchman was top centre-back target + keen but #LOSC not engaging in talks + intend to keep 21yo until summer @TheAthleticUK https://t.co/nE1R4pU2fE
— David Ornstein (@David_Ornstein) January 10, 2022
And now, the door has been slammed shut by Lille’s president, who confirmed that the defender will be at Lille for the second half of the season, saying:
“Sven Botman will stay here until the end of the season. He’s not gonna leave the club – he’s key player to help us achieve our goals”
Lille president Olivier Letang confirms: “Sven Botman will stay here until the end of the season. He’s not gonna leave the club – he’s key player to help us achieve our goals”. 🚫🇳🇱 #Botman
Lille have turned down Newcastle bids – AC Milan will push to sign him in the summer. pic.twitter.com/DF1nbUD88a
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 15, 2022
It remains to be seen just how far down their list of targets Newcastle will have to go to find a centre-back, but they are running out of time to pull off the great escape.
