While Newcastle United fans may be dreaming of Kylian Mbappé or Philippe Coutinho arriving on Tyneside, the Magpies are closing in on securing a £21.5m deal for current Inter loanee Valentino Lazaro.
The Premier League side is on the verge of a £300m takeover by a Saudi consortium, and they are being tipped for a summer of heavy spending ahead of the 2020/21 season.
And The Sun reports that Steve Bruce's side is looking to make Lazaro their first permanent signing of the new regime, and they are in talks with Inter over a possible £21.5m move for the 24-year-old.
The Austrian star arrived in the north east in January, and he made five appearances for his new club before the Premier League was suspended due to the coronavirus outbreak. But Lazaro may have done enough to convince Newcastle to extend his short-term deal.
Newcastle had a clause inserted into his loan agreement, allowing them to sign Lazaro at the end of the 2019/20 season should they desire to keep him at the club, and they are now negotiating with the Italian giants over the structure of the deal.
Lazaro has impressed during his brief spell on Tyneside, and he grabbed his first goal in English football during an FA Cup win over West Brom.
But the versatile star has failed to make an impact during his time at San Siro since moving at the start of the season, and the Nerazzurri may well be prepared to cut their losses after less than 12 months.
Inter coach Antonio Conte will be keen to see this transfer reach its conclusion, as the club is already attempting to balance the books and strengthen their transfer kitty ahead of the upcoming window.
The Nerazzurri are keen to recoup all of the cash they spent on Lazaro, having forked out £20m for the highly-rated winger from Hertha BSC, who went on to make only 11 appearances in the blue and black shirt.
Source : 90min