Newcastle are keen on Borussia Dortmund's Thorgan Hazard, according to German outlet Bild (via Sport Witness).

The lowdown

Newcastle have only made one signing so far this summer, exercising their option to buy Matt Targett from Aston Villa following his loan spell.

29-year-old Hazard, the younger brother of former Chelsea star Eden, is primarily a left winger but he can also play on the right or as an attacking midfielder.

The Belgian only started 14 of Dortmund's 34 Bundesliga matches last season, though he did miss ten of those games through injury or illness.

The latest

Bild claim that Newcastle 'want to sign' Hazard and Dortmund are prepared to sell.

They've set their demands at €15million, which equates to about £12.9million.

The report suggests that the Magpies will be able to offer him a significant hike on his €7million-per-year (£115,000-per-week) salary. They'll apparently regard that as 'peanuts'.

The verdict

What would Hazard offer Eddie Howe and Newcastle, beyond his versatility?

Well he doesn't provide big volumes of goals or assists, only managing six direct goal contributions last season, but his defensive contribution is excellent.

He ranks in the 74th percentile or better for clearances, pressures, blocks and interceptions per 90 minutes when compared with positional peers across Europe's big five leagues.

Hazard is a former Belgian Footballer of the Year and has racked up 45 caps for his country, ranked second in the world behind Brazil.

At last summer's European Championships, Hazard sent Roberto Martinez's side through to the last eight with a winning goal against Portugal that commentator Jonathan Pearce called 'special'.

His brother 'once said' that Thorgan is the 'better' player, and that's quite a compliment considering that Eden featured in the 2019 World XI.

In other news, Newcastle are interested in another Bundesliga star too.