Nabil Fekir’s stance on joining Newcastle as Eddie Howe revives transfer interest

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Newcastle target Nabil Fekir reportedly maintains an ambition to play in the Premier League, four years after a move to Liverpool broke down. Magpies boss Eddie Howe is keen to sign the Real Betis ace, who is worth around £30million, this summer. 

Fekir looked set to be heading to Anfield in the months that followed Liverpool’s Champions League defeat to Real Madrid in 2018. But the transfer from his employers at the time, Lyon, never materialised.

The France international eventually joined Betis 12 months later and has gone on to rack-up 22 goals and 23 assists in 118 games for the Spanish team. And, according to The Sunday Mirror, Newcastle want to get their hands on the player. Fekir still has four years remaining on his current deal but could be keen on a move to England. And he could show Liverpool what they missed out on all those years ago.

Newcastle became the richest club in the world when they were taken over by a Saudi-led consortium last autumn. And the team enjoyed a precipitous upturn in fortunes after Howe took over from Steve Bruce. Newcastle were one of the form teams in England during the second half of last season and finished 11th in the Premier League after a rapid climb up the table.

The north east giants spent around £90m in January as they signed the likes of Chris Wood, Bruno Guimaraes and Kieran Trippier. And they will delve back into the transfer market this summer as they look to build a squad that can eventually compete with the best teams in the Premier League.

Fekir, who has been capped 25 times by France and came off the bench when his country beat Croatia in the 2018 World Cup final, would provide the Magpies with a cutting edge in attack and create bags of chances for his team-mates. And a move to Newcastle could finally draw a line under his failed move to the Reds, which he blamed on his agent.

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“It was a dark moment,” Fekir revealed last year as he spoke about the breakdown of the transfer. “I saw plenty of things which weren’t true. It was said the knee stopped me going to Liverpool but that wasn’t true. I went to Clairefontaine [France’s football centre near Paris] and they did all the proof [medical]. And the knee was fine.

“I had a problem with my agent, my adviser. It was the agent responsible for the deal not going through. Of course I was disappointed not to go to Liverpool – very disappointed because Liverpool are a great club.”

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