Newcastle United Boosted In Winger Chase As Rivals Won’t Pay Over Odds | OneFootball

Stu Forster/Getty Images

Newcastle United have received a boost in their pursuit of Matias Fernandez-Pardo, with RB Leipzig prepared to abandon the race if Lille’s asking price ‘becomes exorbitant’.

The 21-year-old came onto Aston Villa‘s radar during the World Cup, when he featured for Belgium, with the Midlands outfit also making contact with his camp to explore a potential deal.

However, those enquiries failed to develop, while Newcastle have more recently stepped up their pursuit with a clear determination to bring him to the Premier League.

Atletico Madrid are also admirers of the attacker, complicating the Magpies’ route to the Belgian, while Leipzig have since entered the picture as another contender.

The Magpies have nevertheless moved to underline their intentions by lodging an offer of around €40m, excluding bonuses.

Leipzig have also tested Lille’s resolve with a verbal proposal worth €33m, but that did little to shift the French club’s stance, with ‘larger offers on the table’, including Newcastle’s.

Now, according to German journalist Philipp Hinze, Leipzig will withdraw from the pursuit of Fernandez-Pardo ‘if the amount becomes exorbitant’.

Lille’s president Olivier Letang does not want to sell Fernandez-Pardo and it may take the kind of offer Leipzig are not willing to make in order to change his mind.

That could give Newcastle a clearer run at the forward, although Atletico Madrid would still represent a significant obstacle for the Magpies.

The Spanish giants remain keen and can offer the Champions League football that Newcastle cannot.

Whether the Tyneside outfit can ultimately strike an agreement with Lille will need to be resolved soon, with the window running short on time for negotiations to drag on.

Newcastle are currently closing in on Manchester City midfielder Nico Gonzalez as they seek to add further steel to their engine room.

Leipzig are set to sign attacking target Christopher Nkunku despite efforts from Newcastle to hijack the move, although the Bundesliga outfit may struggle to repeat that trick with Fernandez-Pardo as things stand.