Newcastle United pursue second defensive deal as Kieran Trippier move edges closer

The relegation-threatened club submitted a formal bid for Trippier, in the final year of his contract at Atletico Madrid, over the weekend.

And the 31-year-old right-back – who played under Eddie Howe earlier in his career at Burnley – made what could turn out to be a farewell appearance yesterday in a 2-0 win over Real Vallecano.

Diego Simeone addressed Trippier’s situation after the game.

"We have always had to live with these situations,” said Simeone.

“It always happened that important players for the team had the chance to leave. Then it will depend on what the player wants – and it's up to us to adapt to what happens.

“You know very well that once the footballer makes a choice, there is not too much we can do as coaches apart from telling Trippier how important he is for our team. Therefore, we’ll look for solutions depending on what will happen."

The Trippier deal isn’t the only one that United are pursuing in the early part of the window.

Lille centre-half Sven Botman, rated in the £30million bracket, is another target. The 21-year-old, however, would have to be persuaded to swap Champions League football for a relegation battle.

Head coach Howe, for his part, is keen to see the club get players in early – as “every day matters”.

“Of course, ideally, you'd want to utilise every day that you have,” said Howe.

“Certainly, from our perspective, we know we're in a hurry, we're not sat back thinking we've got all the time in the world. That's not where we are in our current position. Every day matters.

“In saying that, you don't control a lot of those factors, the players and the clubs, and sometimes the agents, control the speed of things. We're well aware of what we need to do, but, as I say, doing it is another thing. It's very complex."

Newcastle’s next Premier League game is the January 15 home fixture against Watford, and the club, which had its last two games postponed due to Covid-19 cases and injuries, hopes to have at least two new faces in the squad by then.

Attacking reinforcements also being sought by the club, which has lost Callum Wilson to a calf injury.

Wilson, the club’s leading scorer, could be sidelined until February with the injury he suffered in the 1-1 Manchester United late last month, though Howe is yet to give an update.

Allan Saint-Maximin and Ryan Fraser were also forced off in the game.

United recruited Nicky Hammond as a transfer advisor on a short-term contract last month to assist it in the transfer window. Hammond, previously director of football at Celtic, is working with Howe, co-owner Amanda Staveley and Steve Nickson, the club’s longstanding head of recruitment.

The final decision on signings rests with the Public Investment Fund, which owns 80% of the club.

Newcastle are 19th in the Premier League table with 19 games played.

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