Toulouse defender Christoper Jullien was heavily coveted by Newcastle during the summer transfer window, but did not feel ‘ready’ for a move to the Premier League.
The centre back was also fancied by Premier League rivals Southampton, but a report in TalkSPORT has revealed that the 25-year-old felt he wasn’t in the right place to move to England.
However, the 6 ft 5 in colossus did come close to making a switch:
We spoke of an exit, but I’m here.
There was interest, but that’s how it is. We spoke with the manager, realised I was missing a few things.
He knows football and some players who left for the Premier League, and I’m not ready. I’m here to learn.
The day I’ll be ready, maybe I’ll go see elsewhere. For now, I’m very happy here.
Jullien has been at Toulouse since 2016, making 74 appearances in his time in Southern France.
Newcastle ended up signing centre backs Fabian Schär and Federico Fernandez over the summer to bolster Rafael Benitez’s defence.
