Gary Lineker’s transfer message to Leicester over Lille star hijacked by Alan Shearer

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Match of the Day pundits Alan Shearer and Gary Lineker have come to publicly disagreed about who should sign Lille defender Sven Botman. The defender was one of Newcastle’s top targets in the January transfer window but a deal never materialised.

The Dutch under-21 international, again, impressed in the Champions League against Chelsea on Tuesday night.

Although Lille lost 2-0 to Thomas Tuchel’s side on the night, Botman display deserved plenty of credit and was one of the Ligue 1 outfit’s star performers – along with Renato Sanches.

With Leicester struggling for consistency in the Premier League, Lineker has suggested that his beloved side pursued Botman in the summer.

He tweeted: “Not been a great night for Lille but I think Sven Botman looks decent, ahem @LCFC (Leicester’s official account).”

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However, many suggested that the former England international’s wishes are very unlikely to come true given that reports have circulated that Newcastle will renew their interest in the defender at the end of the season.

One who couldn’t let the comment pass by was Toon Army hero Shearer, who quote retweeted Lineker’s plea with a caption of black and white emojis – hinting that the defender was St. James’ Park-bound.

The 22-year-old is valued at £27million by Transfermarkt, though Lille are reportedly willing to let him leave but for a fee significantly above that mark.

But the to-and-fro between the two TV pundits didn’t stop there.

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Lineker responded to Shearer’s joking dig by commenting: “You just bought Dan Burn,” but that wasn’t enough to quieten the Magpies hero.

Shearer replied: “And more in the summer!!!”, with Newcastle’s new ownership expected to splash the cash at the end of the season and continue rebuilding the club into one of the top teams in Europe rather than a relegation threat.

But former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand believes that the Tyneside club may be better off looking for a more proven, established centre back if they are to progress.

He told BT Sport: “I think there is still much to do. I think he’s been a consistent, solid performer for Lille but, again, going into the Premier League is a different proposition.

“My only concern is pace. I think he’s solid enough but you look at even these clips we’ve picked here, [he’s] always slide tackling. That always concerns me when I look at a defender.

“You’re sliding because you’re late to something, you obviously lack pace, you’ve seen the danger a bit later than you should.

“There’s no doubt in this guy, he knows how to defend. He gets himself in good positions, he very rarely gets exploited for his pace which is great but then that’s in the French league he’s done that.

“The big question when you’re recruiting is can he transfer that to the Premier League which seems a faster, NBA-style pace at times.”

Newcastle’s transfer dealings have impressed so far with Burn and Kieran Trippier both impressing since joining the club, and manager Eddie Howe will be hoping that – if he signs Botman – he is able to prove he was right to trust his gut rather than Ferdinand.

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