The teenager will arrive at the club once he reaches 18 with Ross Wilson celebrating the new signing today
Newcastle United's Sporting Director Ross Wilson
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Newcastle United have announced the signing of highly-rated Ecuadorian youngster Johan Martinez from Independiente del Valle.
The 16 -year-old will officially join the Magpies after his 18th birthday in and will remain with Independiente del Valle in the meantime until the summer of 2027
It is a deal that is very much for the future but Newcastle are believed to have beaten the likes of Barcelona and Bayer Leverkusen for his signature.
Ross Wilson, Newcastle United sporting director said: "We’re delighted to beat off serious competition from leading clubs across Europe to bring Johan to Newcastle United .
“Identifying and recruiting promising young players is a key part of how we build for the future, and our scouting and recruitment team have worked diligently to secure Johan’s signature.
“Independiente del Valle have a strong reputation for developing young players and Johan has undoubtedly benefited from that environment.
"He will continue his progress there while we maintain a close connection with his development, and we look forward to welcoming him to Newcastle next year."
As reported by Chronicle Live earlier this month Thomas Federspiel is now Newcastle's main talent spotter on the ground in South America.
This could be the first of many under-the-radar deals for the Magpies as they look to bolster their youth ranks with talent from that particular region. Federspiel was one of sporting director Wilson's first appointments after coming in from Nottingham Forest and bringing the City Ground scout with him.
Speaking on the club's recruitment policy, Wilson said: “Moving forward, we definitely want to expand our recruitment network. We’ve already done that, to be honest, in my time here. We’ve already expanded the recruitment network. We’ll continue to do so as we move forward.
“I think it’s also clear that we feel that it’s highly likely, not always, but highly likely that there’ll be more value outside of the Premier League than there is in it."
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