Newcastle are in pole position to sign Atletico Madrid attacker Gelson Martins after making a loan bid for the Portugal international, according to AS.
The Spanish newspaper claims that the Magpies have offered to pay £4.4million to have Martins, 23, until the end of the season.
It is understood that Newcastle’s move to sign Martins has made them the favourites for his signature, even though Arsenal and Monaco have shown the most interest in him.
AS adds that the ex-Sporting CP winger would be happy to move to the Premier League and Atletico are ready to let him go so that they can free up their wagebill to sign Alvaro Morata from Chelsea.
Good move for Newcastle?
Martins may not have played a lot of football since joining Atletico in the summer, appearing just 12 times in all competitions, but he would certainly get plenty of game-time at St James’ Park and be a cut above Rafa Benitez’s current options in the wide areas.
The Portuguese winger has pace to burn and would be a serious threat to any opposition defence in the Premier League.
According to AS, he earns £51,000-a-week, so signing him for the £4.4million loan fee and covering his wages could mean that this would be a costly roll of he dice by Newcastle if it goes wrong.
However Mike Ashley is not going to give Benitez the funds to sign a top-quality player permanently, it seems, so this will have to do and if it goes wrong, you know whose fault it is.
This is Futbol rating 8/10
Likely to happen?
Judging by this report from Spain, Newcastle are well-placed to sign Martins.
He appears keen on a move to England, Atletico are happy for him to go and Newcastle’s offer seems fair.
However this is Newcastle United we are talking about – pretty much every transfer report should be treated with caution.
This is Futbol rating 5/10