NEWCASTLE UNITED are monitoring Bertrand Traore’s situation at Lyon, but look to have missed out on Antonee Robinson, with the Wigan Athletic defender set to complete a £2m move to Sheffield United.
Having struck gold when they signed Allan Saint-Maximin from Nice last summer, Newcastle’s recruitment team are once again eyeing a Ligue 1-based winger as they look to make further attacking improvements in the current transfer window.
Traore has spent the last three seasons at Lyon, having joined the French side from Chelsea for around £9m, but while he impressed in his early days at the club, forming an effective attacking relationship with Memphis Depay, he has fallen down the pecking order in the last 12 months.
The 24-year-old started just 14 Ligue 1 matches as Lyon finished in a disappointing seventh position last season, and was an unused substitute as Rudi Garcia’s side reached the Champions League quarter-finals on Friday night despite losing to Juventus.
He is likely to be sold this summer, with Newcastle one of a number of English sides pondering a move. Everton and Leicester City have also been linked, with the winger potentially representing something of a bargain given his relatively lowly price tag when he moved to France in 2017.
Chelsea have first refusal on his services after inserting a buy-back clause into the deal they struck with Lyon three years ago, but Frank Lampard has already signed Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech this summer and is close to agreeing a deal with Bayer Leverkusen for Kai Havertz.
As a result, he is happy to see Traore move elsewhere, and Newcastle will attempt to initiate formal discussions once Lyon’s Champions League campaign reaches its conclusion.
Magpies officials held talks over Robinson over the weekend, but Sheffield United are set to complete a £2m deal for the 23-year-old in the next few days, with Wigan’s administrators keen to complete a sale as they look to raise funds to pay off some of the club’s debts.
With Danny Rose and Jetro Willems’ futures both uncertain after their loan deals expired, Steve Bruce is looking for a new left-back, but while Newcastle were willing to meet Wigan’s asking price for Robinson, who came close to joining AC Milan in January, Sheffield United look to have won the battle for his signature.
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