Newcastle have missed out on a superstar as £29m summer target wins MVP and is named in team of the week

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One of Newcastle United’s top summer targets has started the new season in great form.

It was a miserable summer transfer window for Newcastle United fans, who were left emptyhanded after being teased with countless links to top-class players.

It seemed inevitable that Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi would end up at St James’ Park after multiple bids were submitted, but Newcastle ended up walking away from the deal.

The search for a new right-sided winger suffered the same fate with Newcastle launching a last-gasp £50m bid for Anthony Elanga which was rejected by Nottingham Forest.

Another area Eddie Howe wanted to address was at goalkeeper, with John Ruddy and Odysseas Vlachodimos arriving as new signings.

But Howe wanted a keeper capable of challenging Nick Pope and the club’s initial target was Giorgi Mamardashvili.

Newcastle United interest in Giorgi Mamardashvili

Newcastle’s preferred target heading into the summer window was Mamardashvili. The 23-year-old ticked all the boxes, he was young but experienced enough to be the long-term heir to Pope.

However, Newcastle upset Mamardashvili during talks after refusing to promise him a guaranteed starting spot ahead of Pope.

Instead, the Georgia international completed a £29m move to Premier League rivals Liverpool.

Liverpool identified Mamardashvili as a long-term replacement for Alisson, and he is set to move to Merseyside next season after staying with Valencia for the 2024/25 season.

Newcastle instead turned their attention to a £20m deal for Vlachodimos, but Howe is still unhappy with the goalkeeper situation and Newcastle could return for James Trafford in January.

Giorgi Mamardashvili in great form this season

Missing out on Mamardashvili was already a big blow for Newcastle and his great form this season has only rubbed salt into the wounds.

Valencia have suffered a poor start to the season but Mamardashvili has been one of their standout performers.

They picked up their first La Liga win of the season on Saturday after beating Girona 2-0 and Mamardashvili was handed the MVP award after making three eye-catching saves.

Mamardashvili was also named in the WhoScored La Liga team of the week with a rating of 7.37.

After the match, he was quoted by Superdeporte saying “It’s my job to make stops. I’m not the MVP, but the rest of the players with me.”

It seems Newcastle may have missed out on signing a potential superstar this summer. Instead, Liverpool managed to get their hands on him.