Ex-Newcastle United target Hugo Ekitike reveals why he joined Paris Saint-Germain

The 20-year-old striker – who had stalled on a move to St James’s Park – has joined the club on loan from Stade de Reims.

"It's a mixture of many feelings, many emotions,” said Ekitike. “I obviously feel a lot of joy and pride to be signing with Paris. It's a real proud moment to be here. My heart chose Paris. I’m also French, it’s the club from my country. And it's a club where the greatest players play, where there is a quality and experienced staff, and the desire to win all the trophies in all the competitions.

"There is everything here for me to improve. All the ingredients are here, so it's a logical choice for me to be here. I myself have family in the Paris region, and I have always followed Paris Saint-Germain.

"All this makes it very natural for me to want to join this club.”

Newcastle switched to other targets earlier this month after failing to get an agreement with Ekitike, and head coach Eddie Howe gave a transfer update after Friday’s 3-0 win over 1860 Munich in Austria.

“There’s nothing to report, and we’re still in the process of working very hard behind the scenes to try and improve the squad,” said Howe.

“That work is continuing every day, even from here. We are keen to add strength to certain areas of the team. It remains to be seen whether we can get a deal done. It’s a difficult window, a difficult market, high prices and very limited availability.”