Action Images via Reuters
Newcastle United have made a formal offer to sign Lille forward Matias Fernandez-Pardo ahead of Atletico Madrid, according to L'Equipe.
The Magpies have seen four first-team stars depart this summer with Anthony Gordon joining Barcelona, while Sandro Tonali joined Tottenham, Bruno Guimaraes joined Arsenal, and former captain Kieran Trippier moving to Wolves after his contract expired.
The club brought in Bazoumana Toure, Seun Steur, Aladji Bamba, Ewen Jaouen, Lukas Hornicek before Eddie Howe departed his role as manager, and new boss Matthias Jaissle has since signed defender Amar Dedic too. But the club want to make more additions before the transfer deadline next week, and a new forward has emerged as one of the things on their wishlist.
According to a report by L'Equipe, the club have made Fernandez-Pardo one of their top targets, and a formal offer worth €45m (£34.8m) including bonuses has been received by the Ligue 1 side.
La Liga giants Atletico Madrid are also showing a strong interest in the Belgium international, who is desperate to leave Lille this summer, but it's understood that Newcastle have the financial capacity to blow Madrid out of the water should a bidding war develop.
Lille president Olivier Letang is adamant that he won't sell Fernandez-Pardo, and doesn't want to set the precedent that a player kicking up a fuss will get what he wants. However, a big offer could change his mind, with the player pushing to leave before next week's deadline.
Fernandez-Pardo wants to leave Lille, despite their participation in the Champions League this season, and Newcastle are hoping to accelerate a move by tabling a formal offer. It's currently unclear if Lille would be willing to accept their bid.
The 21-year-old is capable of playing as a central striker or as a winger, and featured for Belgium at the World Cup this summer, as the team reached the quarter-finals before being eliminated by eventual winners Spain.
Bundesliga side RB Leipzig are also understood to be showing an interest, while Man Utd, Liverpool, Arsenal, and others in the Premier League have also been linked with an interest this summer.
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Fees correct prior to summer 2026
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Matias Fernandez-Pardo Ligue 1 Stats 25/26
Appearances
Minutes
Goals
Assists
Shots (per 90)
Key Passes (per 90)
Statistics courtesy of WhoScored
Fernandez-Pardo a Huge Talent
Matias Fernandez-Pardo
Newcastle opened their season with a hard-fought 2-2 draw against Liverpool in the Premier League, with Anthony Elanga and Joe Willock scoring two excellent counter-attack goals.
The first, in particular, showed off the pace of Sweden international Elanga, who is widely considered to be one of the fastest players in world football. But Fernandez-Pardo has been clocked running at around 39km/h, which is faster than Elanga's fastest at 36.91km/h.
His incredible speed, alongside what the team already has, plus his huge potential, means this could be a shrewd signing for the Magpies if they can get it over the line.