£80m player who Newcastle nearly signed now finishes as one of the best players in the world at Ballon d’Or

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In the future, Newcastle United will hope to have multiple players challenging for the Ballon d’Or.

That was not the case in 2023, with no Toon players nominated for the prestigious award as Lionel Messi took home the eighth Ballon d’Or of his career after guiding Argentina to World Cup glory.

There were 30 players nominated for the award, as an elite class of players went head to head for the honour of being named the best in world football.

And, interestingly, a player who Newcastle actually tried to sign during the summer transfer window was on the list.

Nicolo Barella comes 27th as Lionel Messi wins Ballon d’Or again

Inter Milan midfielder Nicolo Barella finished 27th, just months after he was heavily linked with joining Newcastle United.

The Italy international came just behind Bayern Munich superstar Jamal Musiala, but was able to finish ahead of Randal Kolo Muani of PSG, Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard and Manchester City enforcer Ruben Dias.

The fact that Barella was even nominated just shows the calibre of player Newcastle actually tried to sign during the summer transfer window.

Newcastle tried to sign Barella from Inter Milan

Barella was the first major name linked with signing for Newcastle after the Magpies qualified for the Champions League. It looked like yet another statement of intent, as they proposed a £50million deal with Inter Milan.

However, they valued him at £80million. Combine that with his desire to remain in Italy and it quickly became apparent that Eddie Howe was not going to get the chance to work with Barella, despite his wishes.

In the end, Newcastle actually used their Barella snub to their advantage. While all the world was talking about Barella possibly joining the Magpies, Dan Ashworth and co turned their attention to Sandro Tonali.

Barella became a smokescreen, as Newcastle snapped up a younger player from Inter Milan’s rivals.

A few months later and the move has turned out to be a disaster, with Tonali now serving a 10-month ban for betting after being investigated by the Italian Football Federation.

Hopefully he returns better than ever next year, and Tonali is one of many Toon players who will be eager to be competing for the Ballon d’Or in the future.