Newcastle United want to ‘open formal negotiations immediately’ – Magpies determined on signing

On Sunday, Sport explained Newcastle United have made an approach to sign Barcelona’s Raphinha.

The winger is on the front page of today’s Sport and the Magpies are pushed forward as a contender for his signing.

Within the report, it’s said the La Liga side have identified the 26-year-old as a player to make cash in the summer because he can help them raise more funds and has received several approaches from England, including one from Newcastle.

Barca need to raise funds to register contract renewals of a few players and also to make new signings.

The Brazilian wasn’t considered as the prime candidate but his situation has changed. Xavi Hernández’s side will listen to offers of around €80m and believe they would receive that for him.

It’s claimed Newcastle, along with Chelsea, ‘enter the final’ bidding for the attacker. They want to ‘open formal negotiations immediately’ and both Barca and Raphinha are ‘going to negotiate with the aim of obtaining the maximum possible economic return’.

Barca hope there’s a bidding war between the English clubs to earn as much as possible, but the final destination will be down to the player. The Magpies are likely to play in the Champions League next season and could get approval from Raphinha, who wants to have a key role on the pitch.

The South American is clear he won’t have prominence at the Camp Nou next season, if Ousmane Dembélé continues and Lionel Messi returns to the club. A move to Newcastle could help him become a protagonist.

Even though the Blaugrana are clear they would go ahead with Raphinha’s sale in the summer, Sport state they won’t start negotiations until they secure the title.

With a summer move on the cards, it needs to be seen whether the player will end up at Newcastle or another club.