Newcastle United defensive shopping list slashed by one as target ‘insisting’ on Aston Villa despite 5-1 loss

It was party city on Tyneside on Saturday as Newcastle United smashed home five goals against a respected Aston Villa side to kick off their Premier League campaign.

Eddie Howe’s men look to be raring to go for the long season ahead after a busy summer of incomings.

The window isn’t closed yet and there may still be more deals in the offing. Here’s your Monday morning round-up.

Wolves target ends transfer talk with new Molineux deal

Eddie Howe’s defensive shopping list was cut by one on Sunday as Wolves centre-back Max Kilman put pen to paper on a new contract to keep him at Molineux.

The Newcastle United boss is well known to have made a centre-back his last must-need purchase of a busy summer transfer window and has been linked with players including Kilman and Crystal Palace defender Joachim Andersen.

Now 26 years old, Kilman has been one of the breakthrough stars at Wolves over the last few years and had also been linked with a move to Tottenham Hotspur and Napoli this summer.

Now, with Gary O’Neil appointed at the club, Kilman has signed a new five-year contract. Wolves sporting director Matt Hobbs said: “This is what Max deserves. We’ve been talking to Max since the end of last season and his evolution, not just through the club, but through his role in the first team, has built a strong foundation for him.

“There was lots of interest in Max, we had several offers, but we haven’t shifted in wanting him to stay. We believe he’s the soul of the team, having been here for a long time now, so he was never a player we considered selling.”

Aston Vila claim transfer win against Newcastle United after Saturday’s thrashing

Newcastle United are set to lose the race to sign Galatasaray winger Nicolo Zaniolo with Gameweek 1 opponents Aston Villa on the verge of completing a deal.

The Magpies have been linked with the 24-year-old this summer as Eddie Howe looks to bolster his midfield but a deal never quite emerged between Newcastle United and the Turkish club.

Rumours continued to swirl even after Newcastle United confirmed the signing of Harvey Barnes from Leicester City, which has seen Howe shift his transfer intentions from the forwards to defence.

Now, transfer guru Fabrizio Romano reports that the highly-rated Zaniolo is ‘insisting’ on heading to Villa Park as the Midlands club finalises a loan-to-buy deal for the star.