Newcastle United ‘remain very keen’ on €30m-rated striker but face competition from French giants

Lewis Oldham
Newcastle target Ekitike

According to reports, Newcastle United ‘remain very keen’ on Reims striker Hugo Ekitike but they face competition from French giants PSG.

Newcastle now have huge funds at their disposal following their Saudi-led takeover. In an attempt to ease their league troubles, they signed five players in January.

Bruno Guimaraes, Kieran Trippier, Chris Wood, Dan Burn and Matt Targett all made the move to the Magpies. They all played their part as Newcastle finished 11th in the Premier League.


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They were also keen to sign 19-year-old Ekitike from Ligue 1 side Reims, but they did not complete the deal.

The Frenchman grabbed ten goals and three assists from his 24 league appearances in 2021/22. He only started 15 times in Ligue 1.

Sky Sports are reporting that Newcastle ‘remain very keen’ on Ekitike. It is understood that the attacker will cost €30m this summer.

They face a battle with PSG though, as they are ‘expected to hold talks’ with Reims ‘in the coming days’.

Eddie Howe has already confirmed that he is getting straight to work ahead of a busy summer transfer window for Newcastle.

The Magpies finished the campaign with a 2-1 win at Burnley, relegating the Clarets, to lift them to a 11th in the Premier League table with 49 points.

Thirty-eight of those points have come since the turn of the year, aided by the arrivals of Kieran Trippier, Bruno Guimaraes, Dan Burn and Chris Wood in January, and fans are looking forward to further investment this summer given the ambitions of their Saudi Arabian-backed ownership group.

“I was joking to someone that the planning would start on the coach on the way back,” Howe said. “Then I had a rethink, it can wait until Monday, but really it starts straight away.

“You have to. The Premier League moves so quickly, the competition is so strong, you have to try and be ahead of the game. We have to try and be sensible about what we do this summer. We know it’s a big time for the club.”

He added: “I’ll be speaking to all the players in different ways, whether that’s a face-to-face meeting or via the phone, and setting out my plans for next year.”