Newcastle United target breaks silence on shock £100m price tag claims - has already starred at St James’ Park

Dibling has been one of the few bright sparks at St Mary’s this season, with Southampton having their relegation confirmed before any other side in Premier League history earlier this month. The Saints, who would subsequently sack Ivan Juric after he failed to transform their fortunes following his appointment in December, will now look to rebuild with a new man in charge next season.

They will likely have to do that without Dibling, though, with the winger being heavily-linked with a move away from the south coast this summer. Newcastle United are amongst those that had been credited with an interest, although it appears that other teams are currently ahead of them in the hunt for his signature.

Back in March, it was reported that Southampton would demand £100m for Dibling this summer in order to tempt them into a sale. That type of fee would see the teenager become one of the world’s most expensive footballers ever - although it is likely that he will leave for a much lower fee should a transfer be agreed when the summer window opens.

Dibling, though, has admitted that those kinds of figures haven’t impacted his game and that his teammates have used it as a joke during training sessions: "Rambo [Aaron Ramsdale] loves it," Dibling said. "I’ll miss a shot in training and he’ll just go, '£90million! £80million!' as it keeps going down.

"It’s all good fun. There’s a few nicknames going around. It’s all jokes. Nobody takes it seriously. It’s just a number. It’s all fun. I don't try to think about it and just try and go into train every day and work hard and train the best I can."

Tyler Dibling’s St James’ Park admission

Dibling’s rise to prominence at Southampton may not come as a surprise to Magpies fans, however, after he shot to fame following a remarkable first-half hat-trick at St James’ Park during an Under-21’s game between the two clubs. Dibling scored an almost identical goal three times as he picked up the ball from deep, ran at the defence before smashing the ball into the bottom corner on three separate occasions.

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Speaking to the club website following that game, Dibling admitted it was a ‘buzz’ to play at the iconic stadium: “Yeah, it was good. A hat-trick in the first half, I've never done that before. The fans were good, considering there weren't that many.

“It was a real buzz, and it was nice to play in a stadium like this. All the [goals were the] same. That's what I do most, pick it up and drive, have a bang – and hopefully it goes in.

“I like to have the ball, dribble, beat a couple of people – and get my shot off. Sometimes I pass it, but I just shot there.”

Dibling played in Southampton’s first game of the season on Tyneside back in August, but missed the reverse fixture between the sides in January through injury - one that kept him out of action for just-shy of a month at the beginning of the year.

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