Newcastle United transfer latest as Malick Thiaw and Marc Guehi remain targets
(Image: PA)
Newcastle United's search for a new centre-half shows no signs of being settled anytime soon.
The Magpies are keen to add a top drawer defender to their ranks as Eddie Howe looks to strengthen in a key area ahead of an assault on the Premier League and Champions League this season.
Newcastle have been linked with a number of players as they monitor the market. Ousmane Dembele, Malick Thiaw and Marc Guehi are among the centre-backs watched, while Newcastle have also enquired about Atalanta youngster Giorgio Scalvini.
Thiaw appears to have emerged as the new favourite, with suggestions the German is available for around £30m if AC Milan decide to sell.
Former Newcastle and England winger Chris Waddle, however, believes they should return to Guehi. United had three bids for the Crystal Palace skipper turned down last summer, but with the England star entering the final year of his contract, Palace could decide to cash in on him.
The Times reported this week that Newcastle were still interested in Guehi, though other reports suggest the defender has his heart set on a move to Liverpool.
Waddle believes Newcastle should up their offer to get a deal done with a need to bring down the average age of Newcastle's backline.
“I think Dan Burn and Fabian Schar have been good servants to Newcastle and I’m not saying their days are over, but they are not getting any younger.
“We know Jamaal Lascelles is back but he had a cruciate injury which is a big injury to overcome, so I think Marc Guehi would be a good acquisition.
“Crystal Palace, to be fair, in the transfer market, they stick to their guns. They put a price on somebody's head and if you don't pay it, he's not leaving."
Having been prepared to pay £70m for Guehi last summer, the player's value has dropped to around £50m - a sum that Waddle feels Newcastle should stump up. The Magpies are believed to be around £10m short of Palace's valuation, however.
“Newcastle could go and get £150million for Alexander Isak which gives them more money to play with, but a replacement striker will be an expensive acquisition," Waddle told Premier League betting site talkSPORTBET
“Guehi would be a big plus for Newcastle because the two defenders in there at the moment are 33, reports say that Newcastle have offered £40m but Palace want £50m and they were always going to ask for more than any initial bid.
“In modern day football, £10m looks like nothing. So if that is their price, then I think Newcastle should go and get him.”