Newcastle United assistant coach Jason Tindall was behind the Premier League club’s Sander Berge pursuit with Sheffield United team-mate Iliman Ndiaye now a target, according to Yorkshire Live.
The Blades may be in for a long old summer; stuck under a transfer embargo and facing up to some serious interest for a number of key players.
Promotion, of course, would go a long way to strengthening Paul Heckingbottom’s hand, however. Wednesday’s 2-1 win at play-off chasing Sunderland extending their lead over third-place Middlesbrough to six points.
Newcastle like Sheffield United’s Sander Berge and Iliman Ndiaye
Ndiaye, arguably the most exciting young forward in the EFL, has admirers at West Ham United, Everton and a Newcastle side who, under Eddie Howe and Dan Ashworth, are looking to construct a squad built upon the foundations of hungry young talent.
23-year-old Ndiaye – 12 goals and eight assists this term – ticks that particular box emphatically.
Newcastle, the report adds, also showed an interest in midfield powerhouse Berge during the January window. Tindall worked with Sheffield United’s £22 million man during his brief spell alongside Heckingbottom on the Bramall Lane dugout, so has witnessed the Norwegian’s blend of physicality and finesse first-hand.
Both Berge and Ndiaye, barring a late collapse, may soon be playing Premier League football with Sheffield United, rather than with Newcastle, West Ham or Everton. If Heckingbottom wants to keep this talented Blades squad together, a return to the top-flight may be crucial.
“I have seen a few bits and pieces of Berge,” Manchester United legend Roy Keane tells ITV of the former Genk ace. “There was, of course, relief from the club that he wasn’t sold.
“We talk about recruitment, but it’s also a case of holding onto players that you want around the place. (Berge is) a big player, especially in the Championship.
“(The Premier League will be a) big challenge for these players. How are they are going to do in the Premier League? That’s where the big boy stuff is. But he is a very good player.”
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