Newcastle boss Eddie Howe plays down Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar links | OneFootball

Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has poured cold water on news linking the club with moves for Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar.

Ronaldo has been linked with a move to the Magpies for a while now.

Those links escalated this week after reports claimed that the five-time Ballon d’Or winner was unhappy in Saudi Arabia with Al Nassr.

The same reports emerged for Neymar. Paris Saint-Germain tried to sell the Brazilian attacker last summer, but he stayed with the club.

Ronaldo and Neymar have been linked with Newcastle, but Howe played the rumours down.

Howe said (via the BBC): “That kind of speculation has been there from day one since the takeover.

“Naturally, everyone has then assumed the biggest names in world football will be going to Newcastle.

“Now, we’ve not recruited that way. Financially, we can’t recruit that way at the moment. But also we have to bring the right people and the right players into the group.

“I will say the transfer market is such a complex decision. You can’t just pick a name and bring them in.

“There’s got to be a lot of thought going into what we’re doing both financially and looking at the players.

“Those two players are unbelievable. We are linked with different names.

“I know what direction I want to take the team in and what we can and can’t do in the transfer market.”

Howe’s comments will not stop the rumour mill from churning out links as they prepare to add quality to their squad for European football.

Reports claim that Newcastle will move for either Raphinha or Lionel Messi.

The Magpies reportedly want to take Messi for free if he walks away from PSG. His first choice is Barcelona, but they cannot afford him.

However, if Barcelona sign the Argentine attacker, Newcastle will move for Raphinha. They will try to bring him back to the Premier League as he would be surplus to requirements for the Catalans.

Barcelona will demand around €100 million for the Brazilian. The fee would eclipse Newcastle’s record move for Alexander Isak.