Report: Newcastle eye bargain £1.6m EFL star, also want ‘unbelievable’ ex-Man City man

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Newcastle United are looking into a bargain deal for Queens Park Rangers defender Rob Dickie while Celtic’s forgotten man, Olivier Ntcham, could also return to the Premier League during the transfer window, The Athletic reports.

After guiding the Magpies to a relatively comfortable 12th-place finish, another challenge is about to begin for Steve Bruce.

The influential Federico Fernandez is set to become a free agent at the end of next month while Joe Willock, Newcastle’s record-breaking loanee, will be tasked with replicating his new-found goalscoring heroics at Arsenal next term.

And, according to The Athletic, the north east giants are casting their net far and wide in search of potential replacements.

The report backs up claims linking Newcastle with Kristoffer Ajer, Tosin Adarabioyo, Cameron Carter-Vickers and Vitesse Arnhem’s Danilho Doekhi.

It is believed, however, that Rob Dickie, the ball-playing centre-half who has impressed since joining QPR from Oxford United, is viewed as a more affordable option.

Newcastle were linked with Dickie last summer too, via The Sun, before QPR sealed a bargain £1.6 million deal.

Can Ntcham be Newcastle’s new Shelvey?

One-time Manchester City youngster Ntcham is also a target.

The £4 million Celtic playmaker has endured a nightmare spell on loan at Marseille and, with just one year left on his contract, you’d imagine the Hoops would jump at the chance to cash in should Newcastle make an acceptable offer.

Given that Ntcham has scored just 13 league goals in 87 games for Celtic, the silky France U21 international can probably be considered more of a Jonjo Shelvey alternative than Joe Willock’s replacement.

“Unbelievable,” then-Celtic boss Neil Lennon said of Ntcham in 2019 after the Hoops’ 2-0 defeat to Cluj in a Europa League dead rubber.

“To give him the captaincy and then for him to take on the responsibility the way he did was excellent. I thought his all-round game tonight was absolutely top class.”