Journalist Ben Jacobs has admitted Newcastle United and other clubs will have to pay £70-80m if they wish to sign Moises Caicedo.

The Lowdown: Caicedo won't come cheap

It is looking abundantly clear that Newcastle and Eddie Howe are keen on bringing in some more depth in the centre of midfield after Jonjo Shelvey picked up another muscular injury, with the likes of Caicedo and Youri Tielemans being linked.

This is why they could soon be about to land Alan Varela from Boca Juniors, which would show they are also looking towards the future rather than purely stopgap signings.

Therefore, Caicedo could be that player, as he's now very much Premier League-proven with 23 appearances under his belt and widely regarded as the 'crown jewel' of his national side, according to Ecuadorian football historian Enrico Castro-Montes.

The Latest: Caicedo going to be an expensive signing

Jacobs has been speaking on The Done Deal Show about the Newcastle transfer target and how he won't come cheap if any team wishes to sign him this season.

He said: "With Moises Caicedo, Brighton's valuation - and this was even said when Graham Potter was still at Brighton - is somewhere in the region of £70-75m, and when a figure of £42m was quoted to Graham Potter when he was still the Brighton manager, he laughed and said not even close, you'll only be able to buy his boots for £42m.

"So I think it's clear, even if Brighton come down on valuation slightly, that you're going to need, minimum, £60m for Caicedo, and Brighton would really like £70-75m."

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The Verdict: Newcastle should dodge big-money move

Given that Newcastle already have two £40m players in their midfield in the form of Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton, the need for yet another expensive midfielder may not necessarily be at the top of Howe's wishlist.

Instead, they should perhaps focus on moving for a younger talent that may not arrive demanding to start every game in the league - so if they can get Varela over the line, that could be a smart piece of business.

Also, the fact that Newcastle are fighting against Financial Fair Play regulations, as highlighted recently by Howe, it would make sense for them to avoid a big-money signing in January and instead wait until the summer when they may have a lucrative sponsorship deal behind them.