Newcastle 'agree' deal to send another Premier League star to Saudi Pro League
Newcastle have reportedly agreed to sell Miguel Almiron to Saudi Arabian side Al-Shabab in order to make room for reinforcements.
Almiron is a key player for Eddie Howe and is approaching five years with the club, where he has contributed 30 goals and 11 assists in 195 matches. The Paraguayan winger still has two and a half years left on his Newcastle contract, but it seems the club are ready to cash in on him.
They are in negotiations with Al-Shabab, according to reporter Ben Jacobs, and have reached a ‘provisional agreement’ to sell Almiron, who joined from Atalanta United for £20.7million in January 2019. There is no conflict of interest because Al-Shabab are one of the Saudi Pro League sides who are not owned by Newcastle’s majority shareholders, the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund.
Nevertheless, the club has strong links to the Middle Eastern country, with PIF owning Al-Nassr, Al-Hilal, Al-Ittihad, and Al-Ahli. The Saudi Pro League has been attracting stars from Europe by promising gigantic wages, although Jordan Henderson ’s hasty exit from Al-Ettifaq has tempered the excitement slightly.
The potential sale of Almiron comes after the Magpies made it clear that they were not willing to sanction the departures of Kieran Trippier and Callum Wilson. Trippier has been targeted by Bayern Munich and it seems that Almiron’s departure is a preferable outcome to the club’s hierarchy. Newcastle are keen to strengthen their squad in the January transfer window – with Everton midfielder Amadou Onana among their targets – but financial constraints means they need to sell before they can buy.
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Newcastle recently admitted they might have to sell players before they can reinforce Howe’s squad. Newcastle have lost £140m over the past two years and Howe explained: “I don’t think there’s any surprise in that because every football club will have to trade now with Financial Fair Play being such a prominent part of football.
“So selling players and trading is part of what every football club is going to have to do and we’re no different. So whether it’s our top players as you quote, that remains to be seen but selling players and trading will be part of football going forward now I think.”
Miguel Almiron could be about to move to Saudi Arabia (Getty Images)Chief executive Darren Eales said: “It’s difficult to say specifically on certain players, but I can say that if we’re going to get to where we want to get to, at times it is necessary to trade your players. Any decision we make will always be against the backdrop of the medium to long-term benefit for the club.”
Newcastle are enduring a difficult campaign. They sit 10th in the Premier League, having won just nine of their 21 matches so far this season and are 14 points adrift of the top four after exiting the Champions League in the group stage.
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