More big claims have emerged on the transfer front, this time covering Newcastle United’s ongoing attempts to land a new centre-back.
In a Friday lunchtime ‘exclusive’ from The Times‘ Martin Hardy, it’s reported that Newcastle will turn to Atalanta star Giorgio Scalvini next after closing in on deals for Anthony Elanga and James Trafford.
Hardy reports that Eddie Howe is a huge fan of the 21-year-old defender and has identified the Italian as our top centre-back target now a move for Marc Guehi appears to be off the table.
The Italy international, who recently recovered from a serious ACL injury, is considered a player of massive potential and it seems the club will soon test Atalanta’s resolve to keep him.
Elsewhere, The Times report that our £55m bid for Anthony Elanga has been accepted by Nottingham Forest and that personal terms will not be an issue, suggesting that deal is rapidly moving close to completion.
As for James Trafford, the Burnley stopper could quickly take our spending to £85m, with Hardy revealing that a £30m agreement is now close, leaving the club increasingly confident of landing the goalkeeper and Swedish winger ahead of our return to pre-season training next week.
Scalvini is described as ‘£30m-rated’ priority in the piece, but we suspect it will take more than that to tempt the Serie A side into a sale, even if ACL and shoulder injuries limited him to just eight appearances last season.
🔺 EXCLUSIVE: The Italy defender, Giorgio Scalvini, is a top target for Newcastle United as they look to strengthen in central defence for their return to the Champions League
Read the full story by @mhardysport ⬇️https://t.co/DktlZ2ASOk
— Times Sport (@TimesSport) July 4, 2025