Newcastle transfer news: Insiders surprised by Toon’s Hugo Ekitike bid

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For a long time this summer, it looked like Hugo Ekitike was heading to Newcastle United.

We failed to sign him in January, but came back with a fresh bid and new hope of completing a deal.

A £26million fee was agreed with Reims. All that was left to do was agree personal terms with the young Frenchman.

That’s where the problems began, and Newcastle eventually walked away from the deal. We turned our attentions to alternatives, but are yet to come as close to signing anyone as we were Ekitike.

Meanwhile, he’s found himself a new club. His decision to reject Newcastle has been vindicated, signing for Ligue 1 champions PSG. He now shares a dressing room with Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar to name a few.

PSG have landed a player who is being tipped to become a star, and that’s why Newcastle’s bid surprised people within the game.

What surprised people about Newcastle trying to sign Ekitike

In the end, Newcastle were unable to sign Ekitike. However, it wasn’t for lack of trying. In fact, we were one of the few teams that did actually try, and that is what surprised industry figures within football.

According to Miguel Delaney’s weekly newsletter ‘Reading The Game‘, football insiders are surprised that Newcastle were the only team to challenge PSG for the 20-year-old’s signature. He adds that Christophe Galtier’s side now have ‘perhaps the best striker of the next generation’.

That shows what Newcastle could have won with Ekitike, had his agent not proven to be a nightmare to deal with. By the end of the saga, a lot of Toon fans were happy to see the back of him.

Delaney’s words also speak volumes about the calibre of players the Magpies are targeting.

Ekitike was targeted because of his current ability and his potential. We’re looking to bring in sensible players who can help us now, as well as being part of the club’s future spine.

We’ve got that with Sven Botman and Bruno Guimaraes. Ekitike, who has been described as ‘special‘, could have joined that spine. But instead he’s gone to PSG, where he will fight for minutes with some of the best players on the planet.