Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has revealed that Newcastle United will 'push again in the next days' to try and sign Flamengo midfielder Matheus Franca.

The Lowdown: Talks opened

According to ge.globo, the St. James' Park outfit have ‘opened negotiations’ with Flamengo to try and sign Franca, who have already turned down a €14m (£12m) bid from Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen.

Franca is thought to have a €100m (£87m) release clause in his contract, but clubs will be looking to negotiate that figure way down, just as Leverkusen have already tried to do.

The Latest: Will 'push again'

Writing in his CaughtOffside column, Romano has revealed that the North East club 'will push again in the next days' to try and sign Franca, who he adds is one of his 'favourite talents' and is 'doing great' at Flamengo:

“It’s sure to be a busy January, and one potential transfer I’d keep an eye on is one of my favourite talents: Matheus Franca.

“He’s doing great at Flamengo and Newcastle are interested in signing him, but there’s still no full agreement.

“Newcastle will push again in the next days, while Bayer Leverkusen have also been tracking him for a long time.”

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The Verdict: Exciting

After reportedly missing out on the signing of young Brazilian midfield talent Andrey Santos to fellow Premier League rivals Chelsea, it will be exciting for the Toon Army to see them push to sign what looks to be another Brazilian wonderkid in Franca.

At just 18 years of age, he has already played 25 senior games for Flamengo, scoring six goals (Transfermarkt), and has won both the Copa do Brasil and Copa Libertadores.

With the arrival of Australian starlet Garang Kuol already, the Magpies look to be building an exciting contingent of youth prospects, and will no doubt want to add Franca to the mix.