Newcastle United news as fresh claim made about Magpies' key transfer target

Newcastle United were incredibly active in the January transfer window, as the club spent over £90 million to try and ensure Eddie Howe was provided with the best possible squad to fight the threat of relegation. Safety was secured with little drama in the second half of the season, as a fine run of form from January onwards pulled the side away from relegation danger which they never fell back towards and several of the January signings were key in that turnaround.

However, one signing which they missed out on was Reims forward Hugo Ekitike. The Magpies were said to have had a bid accepted for the teenage striker but Ekitike chose to remain in France to finish the season.

Newcastle were always likely to return for the player this summer and now Sky Sports News are reporting that a deal is close, with Reims 'allowed' Newcastle to speak to the player, with an agreement close for the player who scored 11 Ligue 1 goals last season.

One of the January targets which did come through was Bruno Guimaraes, who signed for almost £40million from Lyon. Eddie Howe was slow to bring the Brazilian into the team but when he was given his chance, he was one of the standout players of the second half of the Premier League season.

That form has been recognised by Bet Victor's 'stat based team of the year', which chose the Newcastle fan favourite in defensive midfield over Manchester City's Rodri. Explaining his inclusion, Bet Victor said :

"The 24-year-old is the top-rated defensive midfielder for non-penalty expected goals with 0.27 per 90. His 0.96 shots on target per 90 is a better rate than that achieved by teammates Callum Wilson (0.84) and Allan Saint-Maximin (0.83) – meaning the Brazilian brings a deadly goalscoring threat to