Newcastle United want to sign a new central defender this summer**,** amid interest in both Ousmane Diomande and Marc Guehi.
Indeed, Newcastle United finally look to be in a position to spend again, having gone through the entirety of 2024 without making a major first-team addition.
Newcastle want to sign a new central defender this summer and Geordie Boot Boys understands they have been impressed with Sporting CP star Diomande.
In fact, Newcastle have talked to Diomande’s representatives, having scouted the Ivory Coast international for a while now.
Newcastle are also interested in Guehi, though Luke Edwards has provided some added insight into their search for a new option there.
Sporting Lisbon ace Ousmane Diomande
Photo by Gualter Fatia/Getty Images
Newcastle United staff satisfied behind the scenes
According to The Daily Telegraph, the club are proceeding in their attempts to strengthen in central defence.
Their search has taken them towards foreign markets despite the links with Guehi.
Diomande is one of the targets but the report reveals that there is satisfaction behind the scenes that the rest of their potential options from abroad remain something of a mystery.
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For his part, Eddie Howe has been irked by suggestions he puts too much focus on Premier League experience.
How Newcastle United unearthed a gem the last time they bought a defender from Europe
It’s worth remembering that Newcastle struck gold the last time they shopped abroad for a central defender.
Newcastle paid £35million for Sven Botman from Lille and the Dutchman had established himself as one of the best defenders in the Premier League prior to his injury issues.
That proves there’s value for money out there. Though in a different era, Fabian Schar arrived from Spanish side Deportivo La Coruna and he’s surely proven to be one of the biggest bargains in the club’s modern history.
With that in mind, it’s perhaps understandable why staff would feel slightly smug about the idea that the media don’t have a full understanding as to who exactly they’re trying to sign this summer.