As you might remember, Newcastle United, fresh from their takeover, tried to sign Hugo Ekitike from Stade de Reims in January.
They came extremely close, in fact, with it claimed that only the player’s desire to see out the season at the French club saw him turn down the chance of a move to St James’ Park.
Newcastle were also in a far worse position then than they are now, finishing just outside the top half of the Premier League table thanks to an Eddie Howe masterclass and some good signings over the winter.
That means a return in the summer for the young French striker is on the cards, which is what their president, Jean-Pierre Caillot, told L’Union Ardennes.
The local newspaper asked him all about a potential Ekitike exit this summer, with the need for ‘all three parties find themselves’ in any potential deal key for it to go through.
Regarding Newcastle, he said: “They’re an ambitious club, who want to build on the long-term and who manifested their interest this winter. Since then, contacts never stopped. It’s typically the type of environment where he could continue to grow and go to the next level.”
As for the amount needed: “It will need to be over €20m. Beyond that, there is a need to be reasonable.”
That should be doable for Newcastle if they are indeed keen on securing Ekitike going forward, so we’ll have to wait and see what their plans are.
