Newcastle United have ‘cooled’ their interest in Amadou Haidara and the Premier League outfit may also have reservations about spending £60 million on his RB Leipzig team-mate Dominik Szoboszlai.
Now, we don’t mean to rain on Chelsea’s parade – the struggling London giants expected to bring in Christopher Nkunku in the hope of solving their goalscoring issues – but the struggles of many a Leipzig import in English football is proof that Red Bull does not always give you wings.
Timo Werner returned to Germany after a frustrating spell at Stamford Bridge. Hwang Hee-Chan, Naby Keita and Jean-Kevin Augustin, meanwhile, struggled for a variety of reasons at Wolves, Liverpool and Leeds respectively.
And while Newcastle United are admirers of Dominik Szoboszlai – the Magpies watched him score a 96th minute winner against Werder Bremen on Sunday – the Daily Mail reports that Eddie Howe would prefer to bring in a player with a proven track record in the Premier League.
Newcastle United have reservations about an RB Leipzig duo
Scorer of eight goals and a creator of 13 more this term; Szoboszlai has £60 million release clause in his contract. Chelsea’s Conor Gallagher could be available for about half that fee. Leicester City, meanwhile, may be forced to let James Maddison go for below market value if – as expected – the Foxes are relegated from the Premier League just two years after claiming both the FA Cup and the Community Shield.
Sky Germany, meanwhile, report that Newcastle’s interest in another Leipzig ace has ‘cooled’. Amadou Haidara, a deep-lying, all-action midfield enforcer, has been in-and-out of the Red Bull XI under Marco Rose.
The former Borussia Dortmund boss, however, still sees Haidara as a big part of his plans.
“I absolutely need ‘Doudou’. There is no chance (of him leaving). He’s important for us,” says Rose. “Haidara will stay at Leipzig, for sure.”
The Mail point out that Haidara has an affordable £33 million release clause in his own contract. The Mali international would command wages of around £160,000-a-week, however, which the Daily Mail believe would make him their highest earner.
Perhaps Newcastle feel that money could be better spent elsewhere, with a creative midfielder – rather than a defensive one – arguably a greater priority this summer.
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