Newcastle United have made a bid of around £13.2 million for Roma attacker Gregoire Defrel, according to Corriere Dello Sport.
The Italian outlet reports on their website that the Magpies have made an offer to the Serie A club for their 27-year-old attacker – who is currently on loan at Sampdoria – and that Roma are willing to sell the attacker due to the arrival of Manolo Gabbiadini from Southampton this month.
Corriere Dello Sport claim that Roma would be willing to do a deal with Newcastle for Defrel – who has scored seven goals this season – if they came up with the right funds.
Defrel can play as an out-and-out striker, as a secondary striker or on the wing.
OPINION
Whether Newcastle have actually lodged a bid for Defrel will remain to be seen, but if they have, it will surely be to the surprise of the majority of Newcastle fans. Given Mike Ashley’s reluctance to provide adequate funds in the past, they no doubt thought that there were going to be no substantial incomings this month – however, they may be proved wrong. Nevertheless, what may prove to be a stumbling block in this situation is whether Ashley will actually greenlight a transfer for the striker if the proposed bid is accepted by Roma. Rafa Benitez is obviously keen to recruit reinforcements in order to avoid a relegation dog fight, but the owner is the one person who may stand in his way. In last January’s transfer window, the Sports Direct tycoon failed to conduct any business in terms of signings, so the likelihood of him doing so this time around remains to be seen.
