Sporting Lisbon will accept far less than William Carvalho’s release clause – meaning Newcastle United could soon pull off a major summer coup.
If Newcastle United want to make a statement upon their return to the Premier League, obliterating their club transfer record for a European Champion would not be a bad place to start.
The Sun report that the Magpies, who have been promised a rather substantial war chest by owner Mike Ashley this summer, have joined the race for Sporting Lisbon metronome William Carvalho.
The 25-year-old has long been viewed as one of the continent’s most impressive young central midfielders and his starring role in Portugal’s shock Euro 2016 triumph on French soil only enhanced his burgeoning reputation.
A player blessed with superb distribution and immense physical power, Carvalho appears the perfect player to add a sheet of steel in front of Newcastle’s often porous back line.
Although, according to The Sun, they will certainly be forced to pay far more than the £17 million they gave Real Madrid for Michael Owen back in 2005.
The report claims Newcastle are willing to pay £25 million, although links with Everton and West Brom mean any deal will be far from straightforward.
However, it appears increasingly likely that Carvalho will finally leave the Estadio Jose Alvalade this summer after years of speculation. O Jogo claim that Sporting could be open to offers far below Carvalho’s £39 million release clause.
And, according to A Bola, the Lisbon giants have already identified a replacement with HNK Rijeka’s Croatian international midfielder Filip Bradaric lined up as a replacement.
Jack Colback must be quaking in his boots right now.
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