Newcastle United are beginning to make their moves after chasing deals for Joao Pedro and Anthony Elanga
Newcastle United are on the hunt for top attacking talent and have settled on Brighton's Joao Pedro and Nottingham Forest's Anthony Elanga as two top targets this summer.
Both exciting talents, United know it likely take a total of around £120m to land the duo in the coming weeks. £60m a pop for two experienced Premier League forwards isn't to be sniffed at but Newcastle face two very different transfer pursuits when it comes to chasing down the signatures of both men.
As for Pedro, Brighton are open to selling the Brazilian this summer. Meanwhile, the 23-year-old is understood to be open to a Newcastle switch, with the two clubs not too far apart after recent talks.
Chronicle Live reported on Thursday that a £50m bid has been rebuffed - but there is a feeling a deal is there to be made between all parties. Newcastle are expected to return with an improved offer for a player Eddie Howe has admired for a number of years.
Brighton, who purchased Pedro for £30m back in 2023, are set to repeat their old trick of making serious profit for a young, exciting player who they took a punt on during the early stages of his career.
Elanga, on the other hand, could prove a much trickier deal to pull off. The Forest flyer enjoyed a stellar season under Nuno Espirito Santo last term and the City Ground outfit are determined to keep him beyond the summer.
Forest have enforced a strict 'not for sale' policy and unless Elanga himself asks to make the move up north, it is likely Nuno's men will feel confident keeping hold of a player who is still tied down on a long contract.
Despite social media comments back and forth between Elanga and some of Newcastle's senior stars, there is no indication, at this stage, that the former Manchester United attacker is ready to demand a summer exit.
“There is a lot of talk," he said on international duty recently. “I focus on what I can do and my focus today was on the match. In football there are always rumours. The most important thing is that I focus on what I can control.”
There is an argument to suggest Elanga is the more important of the two targets at present. This, due to the fact United are in desperate need of additional reinforcements on the right of their attack - with only Jacob Murphy, naturally, occupying that area of the pitch for Howe.
Pedro is a versatile forward but is used to playing through the middle or on the left, as opposed to being deployed down the right flank. It has been suggested PSV's Johan Bakayoko could be a cheaper alternative to Elanga, should a move fail to materialise.
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