Earlier this week it was reported that Hugo Ekitike had agreed provisional terms with PSG ahead of a move to the Ligue 1 champions.
With personal terms agreed, Le Parisiens now seemingly just need to agree a fee for Ekitike, but that is proving to be more difficult than PSG had hoped for.
Indeed, according to FootMercato, the Ligue 1 giants’ first bid was somewhat short of what Stade Reims are hoping for.
Reims want to sell their ‘special’ striker for a similar fee to that offered by Newcastle United earlier in the summer – between £35-40m depending on bonuses, but PSG’s opening bid was just £23m – somewhat short of what Reims are hoping for.
Negotiations are set to continue, but whether or not PSG cough up the cash remains to be seen.
Of course, the Paris-based club could easily afford such a fee. After all, they’re backed by QSI and are one of the richest clubs in the world, but whether or not they see such a figure as good value is another matter altogether.
Newcastle have seemingly given up on Ekitike as he looked set for PSG, but this hurdle is yet to be cleared by the Ligue 1 side and if PSG are unwilling to pay up, Newcastle may well be back in this race.
The Magpies are still searching for a new striker, reportedly plotting a move for Real Sociedad’s Alexander Isak, but if Ekitike is still on the market, this could be one they revisit.
Ekitike remains a player to keep an eye on as we reach the middle of July and the window continues to heat up.
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