Ex Sunderland and Liverpool player sways £33m Belgian international against Newcastle United move

Here is a round-up of the latest Newcastle United stories from Saturday, March 26…

Newcastle in ‘pole position’ to sign Sven Botman despite AC Milan personal terms

Newcastle are set to make a fresh move for Lille defender Sven Botman this summer after failing to land the 22-year-old in the January transfer window.

The Dutch centre-back has also caught the eye of Serie A side AC Milan, who have reportedly agreed personal terms with the player.

But Football Insider has reported that The Magpies remain the front-runners to sign Botman for a fee of around £30million.

Personal terms are not understood to be an issue either with Botman keen on making a Premier League move in January despite it failing to materialise.

Instead, Newcastle made a move for Dan Burn from Brighton and Hove Albion which has proven to be a smart piece of business so far.

Former Sunderland player sways £33m Belgian international against Newcastle move

Newcastle linked forward Charles De Ketelaere has been swayed against a move to Tyneside by former Sunderland goalkeeper Simon Mignolet.

De Ketelaere, 21, has attracted plenty of suitors across Europe, including Newcastle and Leicester City, after scoring 17 goals in 41 matches for Club Brugge so far this season.

He also scored for Belgium against Italy in the Nations League finals last October.

While Leicester remains a potential option for De Ketelaere, it would appear he has ruled out a potential switch to Newcastle following a conversation with Mignolet.

In an interview with Het Laatste Nieuws, De Ketelaere said: “If [a Premier League move] can be done now, why not?

“The Premier League is the highest you can go. That intensity too. In England, you become a better player. But I want to leave everything open.

On Newcastle, he added: “Mignolet once told me that there’s not much to do in Newcastle. And that in winter, it’s dark as early as four o’clock.”

While Geordies are likely to strongly disagree with Mignolet’s comments, the Belgian goalkeeper did spent three years in the area while at Sunderland before moving to Liverpool in 2013.

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