Leeds United have seen three bids rejected, the latter of which was worth £12million in total.
Sean Longstaff’s future is being ‘actively debated’ among Newcastle United chiefs after a third Leeds United bid was recently rejected, with reports suggesting he is still likely to move this summer.
Longstaff has long been identified as a possible summer target for Leeds, who are known to be in the market for midfield reinforcements and Premier League experience. Elland Road chiefs have seen two other known targets in Habib Diarra and Noah Sadiki - The former subject to a £22m bid from LS11 - join rivals Sunderland with focus turning elsewhere.
The YEP reported last week that Leeds had seen a third offer for Longstaff knocked back, falling short with their latest bid of £10million plus £2m in future add-ons. Newcastle are thought to want more for their homegrown midfielder but while it remains to be seen if their demands will be matched by the Whites, a summer move remains on the cards.
A fresh report from the Athletic suggests an exit for Longstaff still ‘seems likely’ despite Newcastle rejecting a trio of offers from Leeds in the hope of getting more than an initial £10m for the 27-year-old. Player trading needs to occur for Eddie Howe to spend this summer and a recent £69m bid for Eintracht Frankfurt striker Hugo Ekitike suggests he plans to do exactly that.
The sale of an academy graduate would offer Newcastle a lot of breathing room this summer, given they can bank 100 per cent of any fee received and insert into the current year’s financial accounts. Purchases, meanwhile, can be amortised - essentially spread out - over the course of a contract, so a theoretical £50m signing on a five-year contract would, in PSR terms, cost £10m-per-year plus wages.
Read More
However the report adds that head coach Howe is not desperate to move Longstaff on, despite the midfielder falling right down the pecking order to start just eight Premier League games last season. Newcastle will play Champions League football next season and squad depth is an absolute must, with any exit needing to be replaced - a potentially costly route and one more complicated that just keeping current options.
Howe is said to be appreciative of Longstaff’s tactical nous and work-rate, as well as understanding his emotional connection with the club as a local lad, and is by no means pushing to cash in on him. And as an academy graduate, he is also the club’s only senior ‘club-trained’ first-team player, with a full 25-man Champions League squad requiring at least four.
The report details how those ‘costs and benefits’ of cashing in on Longstaff remain a hot topic of debate among Newcastle chiefs, who are yet to receive an offer that will tip the scale towards a sale. Leeds have previously stood firm in their own valuations of possible transfer targets - Diarra this summer and Sheffield United’s Gus Hamer 12 months ago - and it remains to be seen if they will put forward a number that can change the outlook.
Continue Reading