Newcastle United have swung and missed quite a few times this summer already. It had looked like they were set to sign Victor Munoz before he headed to Liverpool at the last minute. A deal was agreed with SC Freiburg, only for him to choose Aston Villa instead. Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg turned down a move to St James’ Park, even though Marseille were clearly keen on it happening.
Now, it looks like the time is here to add another name to that list. Once again, a player Newcastle United were interested in is headed elsewhere.
Somewhat unsurprisingly, it is a midfielder once again. The Newcastle midfield has been left significantly weakened this summer owing to the departures of Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali.
Lately, Newcastle United have been looking at veteran midfielders to bring that proven quality and experience to the midfield department. Hojbjerg was one of them. The other was Joao Palhinha, another 31-year-old former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder.
Fabrizio Romano confirms Joao Palhinha’s next destination
According to Fabrizio Romano, Palhinha to Benfica is now ‘here we go’. The verbal agreement with Bayern Munich is done at €14 million plus €5 million in add-ons.
Palhinha had previously agreed personal terms with Aston Villa. When that fell apart, it had raised hopes that Newcastle United could still be in contention to sign him.
Unfortunately, now that door is well and truly closed. And to be honest, it never felt like Palhinha was keen on the idea of joining Newcastle United in the first place.
Now, he heads back to Portugal. As for Newcastle United, they will need to keep an eye on other midfielders. And it does look like they have changed the profile they are looking for after missing out on both Hojbjerg and Palhinha.
Who will Newcastle United sign in midfield?
The only midfielder Newcastle United are currently being linked with is Nico Gonzalez. Fortunately, it is believed that Manchester City are open to the idea for the right offer.
Would Gonzalez want to leave Manchester City to join Newcastle United? That is a different discussion altogether. It is up to the Magpies to convince him.
That is something they have struggled to do time and again this summer. It remains to be seen if the situation changes over the coming weeks.
There is very little time left in the summer transfer window. The Magpies must make some signings. As a result, they cannot let any saga drag on. They must make things happen quickly or move on swiftly.
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