£25.5m PSG player must be devastated he’s not playing tonight, he could have joined Newcastle

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Newcastle United are set to be without some big players when they face Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League tonight.

Sven Botman is going to miss the game due to injury, meaning Jamaal Lascelles will start at centre-back. Elsewhere, Callum Wilson has confirmed that the game has come too soon for him.

They will be big misses for Newcastle, on what is set to be an incredible night inside St James’ Park.

PSG are in town, with Kylian Mbappe set to play on our hallowed turf. It is a momentous occasion, and a chance for this group of Newcastle players to create a memory that will last a lifetime.

But as Newcastle and PSG prepare to lock horns in the Champions League, one player will be sat at home wondering what might have been.

Hugo Ekitike not involved in Newcastle vs PSG

Luis Enrique has a plethora of attackers to choose from tonight, but one forward who is not available is Hugo Ekitike.

That is because the 21-year-old was not named in Paris Saint-Germain’s Champions League squad at the start of the season.

He will miss the trip to St James’ Park, which is the stadium that he could have called home had he not made a massive mistake in the transfer window.

Newcastle were desperate to sign Ekitike in 2022. He was a target in the January transfer window, but turned down a deadline day move to Tyneside. Then the Magpies reignited their interest the following summer, and actually agreed a fee worth £25million plus add-ons to sign the youngsters from Reims.

However, the two parties were unable to agree personal terms, forcing Newcastle to walk away from the deal. PSG then swooped in and signed him on loan, before the deal became permanent earlier this year for £25.5million.

But while he is a PSG player, his time there has been an absolute disaster – so much so that he nearly left in the summer and has since been omitted from the UCL squad.

Ekitike will be absolutely devastated he’s not involved. He will be devastated that he is not in the PSG squad so that he could show Newcastle what they are missing. And he will be devastated that he is not involved as a Toon player, having seen their meteoric rise immediately after he turned down a move.