Newcastle United’s search for a goalkeeper is finally over after the club completed a deal Nick Pope.
The 30-year-old has signed a four-year deal, with the Magpies paying £10million for the privilege.
It’s a great piece of business by Newcastle, and yet another astute signing after the return of Matt Targett.
While some targets are proving difficult to land, Eddie Howe’s side have so far been careful and sensible in the transfer window.
To get a player of Pope’s ability for £10million is quite the coup, and makes the deal even more impressive.
It ends Howe’s lengthy pursuit of a new goalkeeper, with plenty of stoppers linked with the Magpies in recent months.
Dean Henderson was the favourite for a long time, while there was also rumours about Dan Ashworth’s former Brighton colleague Robert Sanchez. Then there were tentative links with the likes of Kasper Schmeichel, Yann Sommer and Jordan Pickford…
And Newcastle even looked abroad for someone to compete with Martin Dubravka, which takes us to Portugal.
Newcastle asked Porto about Diogo Costa
According to the Athletic, another goalkeeping option was Diogo Costa. They report that Newcastle enquired about the Porto stopper before landing on Pope.
The 22-year-old has just enjoyed his first season as Porto’s number one, helping them to a league and cup double.
He also made his debut for Portugal, and now has five caps to his name.
Given the year he’s had, his age and his potential, it’s no wonder Newcastle asked about possibly signing Costa.
However, it feels like Porto’s asking price probably put the Magpies off. A Bola reported earlier this month that Costa would only leave for £51.5million.
That’s five times what Pope cost, so it’s no wonder Newcastle went with the proven Premier League star.
Costa could have been Newcastle’s number one for over a decade, and proven to be well worth the £50million plus investment. But it would have been far too much to spend on a goalkeeper in a summer where the new owners are trying to be careful with their spending.
The Portugal international would have been better in the long run, but Newcastle have made the right short term decision in landing Pope.
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