A couple of days ago we covered a report from Gazzetta dello Sport which explained Newcastle United are very much still in the picture to sign Sven Botman from Lille when the window opens.
The Magpies tried repeatedly to secure the central defender in the winter market, but Lille stood firm. The French side knew they’d be able to get a similar amount, or more, in the summer window so they saw no need to part with the Dutchman early.
Over the past month or so, sections of the media close to AC Milan have been over confident about the Rossoneri’s chances, insisting Botman had already snubbed the Premier League side. That didn’t match with comments from the defender himself, or with the messages coming from the Magpies about a move in the coming months.
Gazzetta, whilst saying Botman would likely prefer Milan, accepted Newcastle are very much still in the picture.
Wednesday evening was a time for the player to shine, as Chelsea travelled to France for the Champions League. He did pretty well with L’Equipe, who are notoriously very tough with their match ratings, giving him 7/10 for the time he was on the pitch.
No player on the pitch got a higher rating, but Botman had to leave the game at around the hour mark.
L’Equipe say he picked up a buttock injury, with Lille manager Jocelyn Gourvennec calling it a “bizarre” injury.
There’s no further information on the injury at this stage, but there doesn’t seem to be a great deal of worry coming from the Ligue 1 side, so it shouldn’t be the type of issue which could cause concern over a Newcastle move.
