You win some and you lose some. Unfortunately for Newcastle United and the club’s fans, they seem to be losing out a lot more often right now than they are winning.
The club have seen key players like Anthony Gordon and Sandro Tonali leave already. Also, there is a growing feeling that Bruno Guimaraes could be on his way out and has already agreed personal terms with Arsenal. If that happens, the Magpies will have lost their best three performers in the same transfer window.
That is far from ideal. And so have been their attempts to bring in replacements. The club appeared to have a deal in place to sign Victor Munoz but lost out to Liverpool at the last minute.
Newcastle United did well to recover from that and sign another highly-rated winger, Bazoumana Toure, from Hoffenheim. But now, it appears that another one of their deals has been well and truly hijacked.
Fabrizio Romano confirms bad news for Newcastle United’s fans
According to Fabrizio Romano, Newcastle United are set to leave talks with Johan Manzambi’s camp as he is advancing in negotiations with Aston Villa. The player is giving priority to the Birmingham club after the deal was hijacked this weekend.
To be very honest, this will come as a disappointment to Newcastle United fans but not as a complete surprise. It feels like the foundation had been laid already for the possibility that this could happen.
Even though Newcastle United have had a deal in place with SC Freiburg for a little while, the reporting in the media has always suggested an uncertainty around the deal and concerns on the part of the Magpies that it could be hijacked.
Well, that is exactly what has happened. Now, it looks like Aston Villa are winning the race. And Newcastle United are set to give up altogether by leaving talks with the player’s camp.
What next for Newcastle United?
It is hard to predict what is next for the club. They have been linked with a few midfielders this week. But Andrey Santos is already headed to Manchester United. Now, it looks like Manzambi will end up at Aston Villa. The Lamine Camara rumours have completely faded away as well.
Yet, when you consider the doubts that had always lingered in the background when it came to a potential Manzambi deal, this should not come as a surprise to them.
One would hope that they had been working on alternatives behind the scenes, even after a deal was agreed with SC Freiburg. It remains to be seen who those alternative targets are.
Obviously, Manzambi is an immense talent. We saw that at the World Cup. So, finding and signing someone with just as much quality and potential will not be simple.
