Newcastle considered signing defender Nathan Ake before he made the switch to Bournemouth, according to the Chronicle.
The report details that the 22-year-old centre-back’s name was brought up during transfer talks on Tyneside earlier in the summer.
However, his name was also quickly dismissed with Newcastle realising that Chelsea were looking to sell the young Dutchman instead of allowing him another loan move.
Since then Ake has signed for Bournemouth, which the Cherries confirmed on their official website to be a club record deal and the Telegraph have reported it to be £20million.
The reported fee would have taken up more than a fifth of Newcastle’s summer budge according to the Chronicle, while it would have also marked their record signing following the transfer of Michael Owen for £17million from Real Madrid in 2005.
Ake is thought of as a young bright prospect and Newcastle boss Rafa Benitez was the one to hand him his Premier League debut back in 2012.
He has since gone on to make a further 40 appearances in England’s top-flight, bringing his count up to 41 in total at a young age.
However, Newcastle have not yet been blessed with the new riches of the Premier League following their relegation in 2016 and it is thought that the Magpies are scouring the market for players who will cost much less than £20million.