Marcus Rashford of Aston Villa arrives at the stadium
Marcus Rashford could be a good option this summer for Newcastle United as they seek attacking reinforcements
Newcastle United have work to do in the summer transfer window as they look forward toa return to Champions League football next season.
Eddie Howe's side squeezed into the top five places to secure a spot in Europe's elite competition and a welcome £100million cash boost as a result. However, there is work to do for the Magpies as they look to continue their rise under Howe in recent years.
The Newcastle boss hinted at this in the run-up to their final fixture of the 2024/25 campaign as they gear up for a massive summer window. Below are some of the latest Newcastle headlines as well as a view on each one...
Rashford claim
Former Manchester City financial advisor Stefan Borson believes Newcastle could agree a £20m deal for Manchester United star Marcus Rashford this summer.
“If somebody wants to buy him, Newcastle are in that small group of clubs who could make it work," he told Football Insider. “Now, clearly at £325,000 or whatever it is, he’d be probably the highest earner at Newcastle by probably quite some way.
"He would probably be something like 8 per cent of their total wage bill. It might be as much as 11 per cent or something of their player wage bill on one player.
“It must be unlikely that deal happens. It’s not impossible. He’s got to go somewhere, right? He can’t go back to United. You look at the number of clubs that can afford a wage of £325,000, it’s £20million all in a year, plus his fee. There are just not many teams that can do it.
“He’s got to go somewhere, so something’s going to have to give. It might be a subsidy from United similar to the Grealish situation, but even with a subsidy, there are still a limited number of people who could take Rashford or that Rashford would go to.
“But Newcastle are definitely on the list. I just think it’s an unlikely deal given what we know about Newcastle at the moment.”
ChronicleLive says: "Rashford has not been the same player for quite some time now and there's zero chance the Magpies break their wage structure to sign the Man United man. Given links with Jack Grealish earlier in the window and developments since then claiming his wages are too high, the same clearly applies to Rashford."
Defender 'interest'
Newcastle are reportedly interested in Roma centre-back Evan Ndicka. Italian news site Il Messaggero claim that the Magpies and Manchester United are one of several clubs interested in the 25-year-old.
Ndicka joined Roma from Eintracht Frankfurt in the summer of 2023 and has been a key player in their defence. However, Roma missed out a Champions League spot last season and they reportedly need to raise at least €10m (around £8m) by the end of the month to keep their finances in check.
ChronicleLive says: "Newcastle will be in need of defensive reinforcements this summer and Ndicka could fit the bill for Eddie Howe's team. If Roma need to raise the fee quoted, that should play into the Magpies' hands when trying to negotiate a relatively cheap deal for a player who has been linked with the club before."
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