Newcastle United transfer news: Brazilian midfielder pursuit takes fresh twist as Nile Ranger returns to football

Come kick-off on Sunday evening, Steve Bruce side's advantage over the relegation zone could stand at just three points – if Fulham beat bottom of the table Sheffield United.

Fears of a third Championship campaign under Mike Ashley are already growing, so a shock result against Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men would be more than welcomed.

Naturally, uncertainty over league positions makes it harder to plan for the summer, especially the transfer window.

In terms of potential new signings, Sporting Lisbon midfielder Matheus Nunes is a name that has constantly cropped up in recent weeks.

Multiple reports in Portugal claimed the Magpies had a £10million bid rejected for the 22-year-old in January but were keen to revisit a deal this summer.

According to Record, Sporting believe the player’s price tag will “substantially grow in the coming months” and have taken further steps to ensure they profit fully from the Brazilian.

The Portuguese club have paid around €450,000 (£389,000) to Nunes’ former club Estorilto to acquire the totality of his rights.

Effectively, that means Sporting will collect the majority – if not all – of the transfer fee if and when they decide to sell the player.

Meanwhile, controversial former Newcastle striker Nile Ranger is back in the EFL with League Two side Southend United.

The 29-year-old has been out of professional football since leaving the Shrimpers in 2018 but has now been handed a second chance.

Ranger has been added to Southend’s squad, signing an incentivised month-to-month contract after training with the club over the last 10 weeks.

Following an extremely troubled career so far at Newcastle, Swindon Town and Blackpool, you’d assume it really is last chance saloon for the former England under-19s star.

We’ve also rounded up all of the other Newcastle and Premier League transfer headlines: