As good as Martin Dubravka has been for Newcastle United since signing from Sparta Prague in 2018, the Slovakian is unlikely to be the man between the sticks for the big PIF project.
A new goalkeeper is expected to arrive at St James’ Park in the near future, and while Thomas Strakosha on a free from Lazio has been touted, there might be other names on Eddie Howe’s transfer wishlist going forward.
One of the players who were linked during the January transfer window was Odysseas Vlachodimos, who is preparing to face Liverpool in the Champions League.
He sat down with Kicker in Germany for an interview prior to the game, where he was asked about a potential move to the Premier League in the future after reports of an interest of Newcastle during the January transfer window.
He said: “It’s special with its packed stadiums and incredible atmosphere, but I’m not thinking about that at the moment. I feel very comfortable at Benfica and in Portugal. My contract also runs for two years.”
That’s when the German magazine point out he was ‘already in talks with Newcastle in December’.
Vlachodimos replied: “As I said, I’m currently only focusing on Benfica.”
It’s clearly something the player doesn’t want to talk about before such an important game for both himself and the Portuguese side, but if Newcastle come knocking again in the summer, perhaps the lure of a better wage and playing in a packed St James’ Park will be too good to turn down.
