- Newcastle United in talks to sign Zadok Yohanna
- Chelsea have now entered the race for Nigerian
- Blues willing to pay around €25m for 18-year-old attacker
Transfer plans are well underway at Newcastle United as they aim to add an attacker or two to their squad after Anthony Gordon’s departure.
Zadok Yohanna has been linked with a move to the Magpies, with the Nigerian winger earning rave reviews for his performances in Sweden.
In fact, earlier this week, AIK confirmed that talks are ongoing for Yohanna’s sale, with Brighton, Tottenham and other European clubs also interested.
And now, it appears as if Chelsea have entered the race to secure his signature.
Chelsea willing to pay €25m for Zadok Yohanna
After losing Alexander Isak last summer, lightning seems to have struck twice at St James’ Park, with Gordon securing a move to Barcelona last month.
The fact of the matter is that Newcastle have lost two of their best attackers and need more quality in their front three.
While Yohanna is far from the finished product, he has quickly emerged as one of the world’s brightest prospects.
Fotbollskanalen report that Newcastle’s offer is believed to be around €21m. However, Chelsea are prepared to blow the Magpies out of the water with a superior offer believed to be in the region of €25m, which could tempt AIK to sell.
Yohanna has been dubbed an ‘exceptional’ player, which isn’t hard to believe considering teams are queuing up for him despite the fact that he only has around 1000 minutes of senior football under his belt.
Newcastle are also in talks to sign Victor Munoz from Osasuna, with the young attacker named in Luis de la Fuente’s Spain squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Newcastle need to react quickly
Yohanna is clearly a wanted man and is nailed on to secure a transfer imminently.
Newcastle appear to have made their play, but with Chelsea willing to pay a bigger fee, they aren’t at the front of the queue.
The Athletic report that Eddie Howe’s side is simultaneously speaking with multiple targets in the same position, which explains their pursuit of Munoz.
In any case, this is a much better transfer strategy than was the case last year when they lost Isak late in the window and scrambled to get deals over the line.
However, if they want Yohanna, they need to react quickly to better or match Chelsea’s offer and also offer the youngster a clear pathway to the first team.
Newcastle United are also set to miss out on Jeremy Monga, who is edging closer to a move to Arsenal.
All in all, there are lots of moving parts in what is expected to be a busy summer at St James’ Park.
