Newcastle United
Premier League • England
Newcastle express ‘strong interest’ in Chelsea flop who has also appeared on Nottingham Forest radar
Newcastle United have a strong interest in Chelsea-owned midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko, according to reports in Italy, as AC Milan look to get rid of him.
Bakayoko is currently halfway through his second loan spell with AC Milan. Their current arrangement is to have him until the end of the 2022-23 season. However, he wasn’t as good for them in 2021-22 as he was back in 2018-19.
Despite winning the Serie A title with Milan, it wasn’t the best season on an individual basis for Bakayoko. Now, the Rossoneri are trying to get rid of him prematurely.
It has put a number of clubs on alert – not least Chelsea, who would have to find another new solution for the £40million flop in the event of him returning.
Among those who could next take him off Chelsea’s hands are Nottingham Forest, who have certainly been busy in the transfer market since their return to Premier League status.
According to Calciomercato, Forest are in contention for Bakayoko’s signature when he next moves, as are Serie A newcomers Monza. However, another solution that could emerge for the Frenchman would be to join Newcastle.
The report from Calciomercato claims Newcastle have expressed a strong interest in the 28-year-old, despite his previous failure to make his mark on the Premier League.
The Magpies supposedly want an experienced midfielder to cap off their summer transfer activity. They have already strengthened in goal with Nick Pope, in defence with Sven Botman, and up front with Alexander Isak.
Hence, midfield is the only area they haven’t reinforced yet that they may want to. That said, they did already bring in Bruno Guimaraes back in January.
In terms of Bakayoko, Milan are more than happy to let him go one year before his deal there ends. However, they need the green light from Chelsea to interrupt the loan before his next move can be organised.
It remains to be seen how the Blues would feel about giving Bakayoko to another Premier League side, and on what terms that might be.
Newcastle move for Bakayoko may raise eyebrows
It would certainly be interesting to see how Bakayoko would get on in a different setting back in the Premier League.
His previous 29 appearances in the competition for Chelsea, back in the 2017-18 season, brought just two goals. Truth be told, that has never been his responsibility, but the Blues were left underwhelmed by their investment.
Whether he would do better at Newcastle is another question. Across his various loan spells away from Chelsea, his form has fluctuated.
Hence, there could be some questions about what kind of player Newcastle would be getting. But as they build their project, he could be an interesting candidate for their midfield.
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