Newcastle to accelerate move for prime Chelsea target as transfer record comes under threat
Newcastle United are reportedly ready to intensify their pursuit of a Sporting Lisbon star, and they could deprive Chelsea of the 20-year-old.
Centre-back Ousmane Diomande has built up a great reputation at Sporting and could soon earn a move to the Premier League. Despite his tender age, Diomande has already forced his way into the Sporting starting eleven and has made 21 appearances in all competitions this season.
Diomande is learning from experienced Sporting captain Sebastian Caceres, while he has also formed a solid partnership with fellow coveted star Goncalo Inacio.
On New Year’s Day, it was suggested that Arsenal could be the club to win the race for the Ivorian’s services. But that is no longer guaranteed, as English rivals Chelsea and Newcastle are ready to put up fierce competition for him.
On Thursday, sources confirmed to TEAMtalk that Chelsea are eyeing Portugal-based pair Diomande and Antonio Silva to bolster their defensive ranks.
According to the latest from the Daily Mirror, Newcastle want to sign Diomande first. It is claimed that the Magpies are poised to ‘step up’ their approach for him and will send more scouts to watch him shine for Sporting over the coming months.
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Ideally, Newcastle would like to sign the youngster this month. However, they are operating close to their Financial Fair Play limit, and Diomande’s £69million release clause puts him out of reach.
Eddie Howe is hopeful that the situation will be resolved come the summer and that he will have more money to play with. Should this happen, then Newcastle will go all out to win the race for Diomande.
Newcastle eye Ousmane Diomande deal
Sporting are primed to make a huge profit on the one-cap Ivory Coast international. That is because they only spent £6.5m when signing him from Danish club FC Midtjylland in January last year, and they have done brilliantly to develop him since then.
Newcastle’s transfer record is at risk of being broken, too. It is currently the £63m which was spent on striker Alexander Isak in August 2022, but Diomande’s £69m release clause means this could be surpassed.
While the defender is more of a summer objective for Newcastle, one player they would like to bring in immediately is Manchester City midfield outcast Kalvin Phillips. The Magpies were recently given a boost as Juventus dropped out of the race, though Tottenham Hotspur are angling to sign the Englishman before Howe’s side.
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