Game-changing Newcastle appointment to act as precursor to £70m summer raid already in works

Newcastle will appoint a sporting director in the next few weeks and Sven Botman and Darwin Nunez will reportedly be their top two summer transfer targets.

The Magpies enjoyed a successful January window, finishing up with five signings for a total cost of over £90million. Indeed, they added crucial recruits to their defence, midfield and attack.

Right-back Kieran Trippier and midfielder Bruno Guimaraes were arguably the highlights. However, Newcastle ultimately wanted to do more deals before Monday’s deadline.

While former Burnley man Chris Wood bolstered their attack, they wanted to sign another forward. Indeed, they came close to landing Reims striker Hugo Ekitike on deadline day.

According to the Daily Mirror, though, Benfica star Nunez is now their top attacking target for the summer.

The 22-year-old Uruguay international will cost £40million and West Ham came close to signing him before the deadline. As such, the two Premier League clubs could fight for Nunez.

Meanwhile, Lille centre-back Botman is the second deal Newcastle will reportedly immediately target in the summer.

The Netherlands Under-21 international, also 22, was the Magpies’ top defensive target throughout January.

Newcastle made the right signings for their cause

Newcastle made the right signings to help them in their fight for this season.

However, they failed to bring him in and eventually settled on Brighton’s Dan Burn. Nevertheless, Botman has since confirmed that he will leave his Ligue 1 employers at the end of the season.

The centre-back, who the Daily Mirror claims will cost £35million this summer, said: “Newcastle is working on a great project and I thought it would be fun to be a part of it.

“I can confirm that Newcastle and AC Milan both made concrete offers this winter. Both were good options for me. I was ready to take that extra step [but] I will continue at Lille. These will be my last months in Lille.”

Should Newcastle get both of those deals over the line, their spending for the summer window will immediately rise to £70million.

Newcastle eye transfer chief to help Howe

Before then, though, the Daily Mirror claims that Newcastle will appoint a director of football in the ‘next few weeks’.

The Magpies want someone to oversee their summer spending plans, including for Nunez and Botman.

The newspaper adds that Newcastle boss Eddie Howe feels confident of guiding his side to Premier League safety after the club’s recent business.

From there, the Saudi-backed club will aim for a top-10 finish in the next step of their project.

Indeed, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund – Newcastle’s majority owners – feel they can have a ‘fresh start’ in the summer.

They hope their league position will not affect their transfer pulling power, like it did at times in January.

Newcastle return to action next Tuesday when facing Everton in the Premier League.