Newcastle to rival Tottenham for Italian ‘world star’ as Eddie Howe plots ambitious €35m move | OneFootball

Newcastle linked Galatasaray attacking midfielder Nicolo Zaniolo

Newcastle United are reportedly considering a summer move for midfielder Nicolo Zaniolo, who only signed for Galatasaray in February.

The Italy international was close to moving to the Premier League in January but the Turkish giants ultimately won the race for his signature.

Newcastle have already brought in Sandro Tonali and Harvey Barnes this summer as Eddie Howe looks to build on an excellent 2022/23 season and Zaniolo could prove to be another valuable addition.

A versatile player, the 24-year-old has the ability to play as an attacking midfielder or as a winger on occasion, so he could provide cover in multiple positions for Eddie Howe this season.

The manager has been linked with several attacking midfielders recently. For instance, Newcastle were initially battling with Tottenham for James Maddison, but they ultimately missed out on his signature.

Now, it seems Howe could sanction a move for Zaniolo as he looks to bolster that area.

That is according to Italian outlet TuttoMercatoWeb, who claim Newcastle have ‘set their sights’ on signing Zaniolo this summer.

The report adds Newcastle have ‘requested information’ in terms of a potential deal for the attacking midfielder.

As mentioned, Zaniolo signed for Galatasaray from AS Roma in February. He came close to moving to the Premier League, too, with Leeds and Everton making approaches for him late in the January window.

Zaniolo has made a fantastic start to life in Turkey, scoring five goals and making one assist in 12 appearances so far for Galatasaray.

He is under contract there until 2027 and the Turkish giants are allegedly ‘reluctant to sell,’ but could be convinced with a good enough offer.

Galatasaray paid €16.5m (£14.1m) for Zaniolo, so they would be looking to make a significant profit on that fee.

Interestingly, Tottenham have also been linked with a move for the Italian midfield maestro this summer, as well as Serie A side Juventus. That is according to a separate report from journalist Nevzat Dindar, who describes Zaniolo as a ‘world star.’

“Zaniolo is also evolving into a world star. English clubs are in for Zaniolo this summer.

“[His valuation] goes up to €35m (£30m) euros. At this point, Galatasaray does not take Juventus’ offers seriously. Tottenham is the closest club to finish Zaniolo.”