Ligue 1 outfit Lille looked set to lose Thiago Maia to the Premier League but Newcastle United didn’t manage to bring the Brazilian to St James’ Park.
The transfer window is shut for Premier League clubs and the highly-rated Brazilian midfielder Thiago Maia will not be plying his trade in England any time soon.
The 21-year-old is one of the most promising young midfielders to emerge out of the South American nation in recent years and impressed in his debut season at Lille, even if Les Dogues did finish just one place above the Ligue 1 relegation zone.
As a result, Maia has linked with a number of Premier League clubs with Newcastle United perhaps the team most heavily tipped to bring him to England.
Interestingly, Le 10 Sport claimed on deadline day that Maia would have preferred to move to St James’ Park rather than Watford. But with funds tight on Tyneside, The Sun added that Newcastle were refusing to pay Lille’s asking price, understood to be around £18 million.
Now, La Voix du Nord has shed new light on the situation and reports that Newcastle instead tried to sign Maia on loan – an offer which Lille rejected.
This rather sums up Newcastle’s summer. A player wants to join but they refuse to pay the fee required and then fail with an attempt to get him on the cheap.
At least Benitez can call upon Jonjo Shelvey, Mo Diame and new recruit Ki Sung Yeung.
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