Newcastle are reportedly looking to beat Manchester United to the signing of Amadou Onana from Everton.
United have been linked with several potential new signings during the January transfer window. So far, Erik ten Hag has yet to add any new faces to his squad ahead of the second half of the Premier League season.
INEOS chief Sir Jim Ratcliffe reached an agreement to acquire 25 percent of the club last month. As a result, MEN Sport understands that the club will need to run any decisions regarding potential recruitment past INEOS before being signed off.
Onana was linked with a move to Old Trafford before the INEOS investment was completed. The Belgium international signed for Everton from Lille in 2022 for a reported fee of £33 million.
According to The Telegraph, Newcastle have put Onana on their shortlist of potential targets. The St James’ Park club are reportedly looking to strengthen their midfielder following the injury to Joelinton last week.
It has been claimed that Everton have put a £50 million price tag on Onana – something that Newcastle are apparently prepared to meet. However, it’s been stated that Newcastle will look to propose a loan deal for Onana this month, with the option to make the deal permanent in the summer.
United themselves appear unlikely to dip into the market for permanent signings this month, with those likely to wait until the summer. Hannibal Mejbri’s exit for Sevilla remains to only deal involving a first-team player so far this month.
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe has previously acknowledged that the club will not find it easy to sign players this month on permanent deals. Howe even admitted that the club may need to sell some existing members of the squad before adding any new faces.
“We do discuss things on a regular basis so there’s no surprise to me,” Howe told reporters on January 12. “We’ve been working under Financial Fair Play restrictions for a long time.
“Selling players is part of every football club’s DNA now. It has to be with Financial Fair Play rules because we have to generate more income.
“To sign players, we may have to sell players. It doesn’t necessarily mean ‘star’ players, whatever is meant by that term, but certainly selling players will be something this club will do now for the foreseeable future.”
