Newcastle have been linked with a move for Lisandro Lopez.
According to a report in The Chronicle the Benfica defender’s availability has cropped in in discussions about bringing Andreas Samaris to St James’ Park.
Lopez was out of favour last season at Benfica making just eight top team appearances in his third season with the club.
Rafa Benitez remains hopeful of completing the long drawn out saga to bring Eibar defender Florian Lejeune but is also covering other options.
Although Lopez has struggled to get a regular game with Benfica he was a regular in the Getafe side during the 2013/14 season after arriving in Europe from his native Argentina.
The 27-year-old is unlikely to cost more than £5m which could appeal to Benitez as other deals drag on without real signs of progress.
Samaris remains among those targets but until there is an outcome to the Lejeune saga no other defensive moves will be completed.
