Newcastle United transfer target set for St James’ Park visit after Liverpool snub

Nice midfielder Khephren Thuram is set to visit Tyneside as part of the Ligue 1 side’s pre-season schedule. Nice will be taking part in the inaugural ‘Sela Cup’ at St James’ Park on August 5 and August 6.

The French side will be joined by La Liga outfit Villarreal, Fiorentina from Serie A and Newcastle United. Should Thuram make the journey with the Nice squad as expected, Newcastle won’t see him in action against them as they only face Fiorentina on August 5 (3:30pm kick-off) and Villarreal on August 6 (4pm kick-off).

Nice will face Fiorentina and Villarreal as part of the tournament which will be decided by a head to head points system. Teams will be awarded the standard three points for a win and one point for a draw but with the added twist of an extra point for every goal scored - promoting attacking football.

Newcastle have shown a keen interest in Thuram this summer, with head of recruitment Steve Nickson monitoring the player as head coach Eddie Howe targets midfield additions. The club have already landed their top midfield target in Sandro Tonali so won’t rush into any deal with Thuram - but the Sela Cup could provide an opportunity to see the player in action at St James’ Park.

The combative 6ft 4in playmaker and France international scored two goals in 48 appearances for Nice during the 2022-23 campaign.

Thuram has been valued at £52million and attracted serious interest from Liverpool before they signed Dominki Szoboszlai from RB Leipzig and turned their attention to Southampton midfielder romeo Lavia.

It is understood The Reds are no longer pursuing the 22-year-old despite previous claims stating he had verbally agreed personal terms which were quickly played down by the club.

Liverpool distancing themselves from Thuram potentially opens the door for Newcastle to swoop in. The Frenchman still has two years left on his current deal at Nice and could be available for less than the previously reported £52million valuation with Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain also credited with an interest.