Newcastle United are confident they can secure the signing of Lille centre-back Sven Botman and are “favourites” for his signature.
That’s according to TalkSport reporter Alex Crook, who has been speaking to GiveMeSport about the highly sought-after 22-year-old.
90min has revealed that Paris Saint-Germain have entered the race to sign Botman and have been in talks with his current employers about a potential move.
The report also claims that talks with Milan for the Netherlands international have stalled, but that Newcastle are still in with a strong chance of landing the £27m-rated rock this summer.
Calciomercato had previously stated that the north-east outfit, alongside the Serie A champions, were the frontrunners, meaning PIF would have to fend off a European giant as well as West Ham United, who the Evening Standard reported are also interested.
Luke Edwards of The Telegraph has said that it would take around £30m to acquire the services of the Dutchman, who was targeted by The Toon back in January – and Crook has told GMS that the belief is growing at St James’ Park that they can lure one of Europe’s fastest-rising defenders to Tyneside.
Do you think Botman will join this summer?
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He said: “There’s confidence from Newcastle they can sign him.
“He’s a left-footed central defender, which is what Eddie Howe is looking for, so I think as we sit here now, Newcastle are probably the favourites.”
TIF Thoughts on Botman to Newcastle…
In Les Dogues’ title-winning campaign back in 2020/21, Botman was a key figure, playing in all but one of the club’s league games. However, his team have since relinquished their Ligue 1 title to PSG and it would certainly be reasonable to suggest that a move to the French giants with Champions League football would be more appealing.
But with the established tandem of Marquinhos and Presnel Kimpembe at the heart of the Parisians’ defence and the uncertainty in the capital following Mauricio Pochettino’s exit announcement, the Tynesiders could take advantage, and as the Chronicle’s Newcastle editor Aaron Stokes pointed out, it would be a ‘statement’ signing for Eddie Howe’s side.