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Report: Anderlecht keen to sign Matz Sels permanently from Newcastle

Newcastle United manager Rafa Benitez gestures during the final minutes of the game during the Premier League match between Newcastle United and Ma...
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Newcastle United flop Matz Sels could leave permanently after impressing on loan at Jupiler League side Anderlecht.

Paris Saint-Germain's French forward Kylian Mbappe (L) vies with Anderlecht's Belgian goalkeeper Matz Sels during the UEFA Champions League Group B football match between RSC Anderlecht...

There is hardly a shortage of goalkeepers at Newcastle United, so there does not appear to be much room at St James’ Park for forgotten man Matz Sels.

Sels became the most expensive goalkeeper in Newcastle’s history, when they paid Gent about £5 million in the summer of 2016, but he lasted just a few ill-fated months as the club’s number one.

The 25-year-old struggled to adapt to life in England, finding it particularly difficult to command his penalty box, and was quickly identified as a weak link in the Magpies’ first few months in the Championship last season.

Newcastle goalkeeper Matz Sels in action during the EFL Cup Quarter-Final match between Hull City and Newcastle United at KCOM Stadium on November 29, 2016 in Hull, England.

He did not make a league appearance under Rafa Benitez from September 2016 onwards and, by the end of the season, returned to Belgium via a loan spell at Anderlecht; a move he could make permanent very soon.

According to DH, Sels has recovered from a difficult start to the season to find his best form once again and has been a key player for Anderlecht in recent times.

Anderlecht's Belgian goalkeeper Matz Sels spits water during the Champions League group B match between Bayern Munich and RSC Anderlecht in Munich, southern Germany, on September 12, 2017.

It is understood that they are keen to discuss a permanent deal, although this is easier said than done as Sels, who is yet to make his international debut for Belgium, will not come cheap.

But if Newcastle sign Martin Dubravka on a long-term deal once his loan from Sparta Prague comes to an end, and with Freddie Woodman seen as the club’s future number one, it would be a surprise if Benitez did not let Sels go.