Manager confirms interest in Newcastle United midfielder as Hatem Ben Arfa 'holds talks' with Romanian club

Newcastle United are back in Premier League action on Saturday with a daunting trip to Manchester United.
Valencia defender Mouctar Diakhaby linked with Newcastle United. (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images)Valencia defender Mouctar Diakhaby linked with Newcastle United. (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images)
Valencia defender Mouctar Diakhaby linked with Newcastle United. (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images)

Outside of the North East, the build-up to the fixture at Old Trafford is centred around Cristiano Ronaldo’s return.

But Steve Bruce’s side must attempt to block out the noise and set their sights on a shock result.

Here’s the latest gossip from St James’s Park:

Valencia plan to sell Newcastle ‘target’

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Valencia plan to sell Mouctar Diakhaby in January amid interest from Newcastle and Leicester City.

The former France under-21s international has played just nine minutes of first-team football this season after ongoing speculation regarding his future.

Reports in Spain claimed the Magpies made a late move for Diakhaby, however fell short of meeting his £9million asking price.

Now, Deporte Valenciano are reporting that the La Liga club will look to sell the defender with St James’s Park touted as a potential destination.

Luton Town boss confirms Elliot Anderson interest

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Luton Town boss Nathan Jones has confirmed his interest in Newcastle starlet Elliot Anderson.

However, Jones denied he tried to sign the 18-year-old in the summer, who had been sidelined with a hip injury.

Anderson returned to United training this week as he looks to add to his one Premier League appearance so far.

"We know Elliot very, very well,” Jones told Luton Today.

"We inquired about him in December, but he’s been injured, so there was never any legs in that.

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"Elliot’s someone we know about and is on our list, as are quite a lot of them, so no legs in that because he’s been injured.

"He hasn’t done a pre-season, hasn’t trained, so no legs whatsoever in that."

Hatem Ben Arfa ‘in talks’ with Romanian club

Hatem Ben Arfa is in talks over a move to Rapid Bucuresti.

That’s according to Romanian journalist Emanuel Rosu, who says Ben Arfa is currently negotiating with Rapid but Ferencvaros and a Champions League side have also shown interest.

Ben Arfa, a fans’ favourite during his five years on Tyneside, is currently free agent after leaving Bordeaux.

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Since leaving United, the 34-year-old has played for Nice, Paris Saint-Germain, Rennes, Real Valladolid and Bordeaux.

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