Despite having a lot of money to spend on the transfer market, Newcastle United aren’t going to let good deals pass them by.
That’s why seeing them being linked with a potential free agent like Houssem Aouar makes a lot of sense as Eddie Howe looks to bolster his squad for the second half of the season.
With a contract expiring at the end of the current campaign, the France international will be a target for many clubs in January, who could pick him up either for a reduced fee immediately or for nothing next summer.
He was close to move to the Premier League last season when Nottingham Forest came knocking, but there’s no denying a move to Newcastle in January will be far more appealing.
The Magpies entered the World Cup break third in England’s top-tier after a great first (near) half of the 2022-23 season, and that could do them the world of good ahead of the next transfer window.
They already won that battle to get Sven Botman, so doing so again for Aouar, where he could reunite with a former teammate of his, Bruno Guimaraes, shouldn’t be a problem.
This all comes courtesy of La Repubblica, who look at the Frenchman’s situation and Milan’s interest in him.
They state that ‘there is no shortage of offers from the Premier League’, before sticking Newcastle in brackets as the named interested party.
They explain that Milan ‘really like’ the player, and that ‘first contacts with Aouar’s entourage have already taken place and will soon be deepened’.
Whether Newcastle have done that remains to be seen, but if they do want the Lyon midfielder, they’ll need to move sooner rather than later.
