Reported Newcastle United target Andreas Christensen has apparently agreed to join Barcelona.
The Chelsea defender is set to leave the Blues at the end of the season when his contract expires.
Christensen has been at Stamford Bridge since the summer of 2015 when he joined from Danish outfit Brondby.
He has clocked up 153 appearances for the club, but it seems he won’t be making many more than that now.
According to Spanish publication SPORT, the Denmark international has already given Barca a verbal indication that he will join them ahead of the 2022/23 season.
The development comes after there were claims that Newcastle had him in their sights ahead of next season.
FC Inter News had reported the Magpies had actually offered him a four-year contract.
Newcastle, of course, were very much in the market for new centre-backs during the January transfer window.
In the end, only Dan Burn came through the door, and the ex-Brighton man has made a big impact.
Newcastle wanted more, and they will want more again this summer.
But it seems they might now struggle to sign Christensen if they want him. Apparently, Christensen expressed interest in joining Barca on loan a couple of years ago, but Chelsea vetoed his departure.
Sport say in their report that Barca have maintained contact with him since their first attempt to sign him.
Newcastle set to miss out on Andreas Christensen as he agrees Barcelona move
Newcastle may well have been keen to sign Christensen.
He is a proven defender in the Premier League, and is obviously set to become a free agent which increases his appeal.
But the suggestion he has chosen to join Barcelona isn’t particularly a blow for Newcastle.
Newcastle will have much more time to carefully consider which players they want to bring in in the next window.
Christensen would have been a nice addition on a free, but Newcastle now obviously have the financial means to target higher profile players.
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