OPINION
Newcastle United cannot afford to be delayed in their pursuit of Bristol City defender Joe Bryan as he appears to be rapidly gaining admirers with each passing day.
The Magpies were first reported as being interested in the 24-year-old Championship star by The Sun who claimed that Rafa Benitez was plotting a £6million bid for the player.
It was then claimed by the Chronicle‘s Live Transfer Blog (Monday, 18:39) that the Magpies were interested in Bryan and that the player would be keen to make the move to St James Park if a deal could be reached.
However it seems that while both parties are keen to be united this summer, a bid is yet to be made.
Sun journalist Alan Nixon, via his personal Twitter account on Monday, stated that the Magpies were still looking for the funds in order to launch a move for Bryan.
While it’s a bad enough thought that Benitez side don’t have enough to sign Bryan, who appears to be reasonably priced if a £6million offer is being plotted, if they don’t bid soon it could see them miss out on signing him.
After looking like the only top-flight club in the race, it seems there are several high-profile teams chasing the left-sided flyer ahead of the next season.
David Anderson, a reporter for the Daily Mirror, stated via his personal Twitter account on Tuesday, that West Ham, Wolves, Bournemouth and RB Leipzig were chasing Bryan’s services.
Wolves have given up on trying to persuade Manchester City's Oleksandr Zinchenko to join them and are now targeting Bristol City left-back Joe Bryan. Bournemouth, West Ham, Newcastle and RB Leipzig also keen.
— David Anderson (@MirrorAnderson) July 24, 2018
This update was quickly followed by a report by the Daily Star that stated Augsburg as well as Mainz were also in the race and even suggested that RB Leipzig had become the player’s preferred choice.
Bryan would be a fantastic signing for any of those clubs given his blistering pace and ability to play as left-back or left-sided midfielder but it’s clear the Magpies would benefit from him the most.
Yet given all the interested parties and the majority of them seeming capable of stumping of the cash needed to sign Bryan then the Magpies are at a real risk of missing out on his services.
Therefore the Magpies have to quickly find a way to raise the funds to move for Bryan as they can’t afford for their pursuit of him to be delayed as based on all the interest in him, it will end up costing them his signature.
