Newcastle United reportedly may now make an 'official proposal' to sign Porto winger Pepe 'in the coming days'.

The Lowdown: £60m release clause

Pepe is a player who is starting to make a name for himself in European football, breaking into Porto's first-team after shining in Brazil with Gremio - he is even protected by a whopping €70m (£60m) release clause.

However, FC Porto could do a deal for less, as they reportedly sold Fabio Vieira to Arsenal earlier this month for less than his release clause. Sergio Conceicao's side are notorious for cashing in on their top talents.

The Latest: Offer expected?

Taking to Twitter, journalist Jeremias Wernek, who works for one of Brazil's biggest outlets, has revealed that Pepe is in the 'sights' of the St. James' Park outfit, and that they may make an 'official proposal' for the player 'in the coming days':

"Pepe, Portuguese champion for Porto, is in Newcastle's sights. The English team may present an official proposal in the coming days. Gremio has 12.5% of capital gain from the business."

The Verdict: Avoid

Even though Pepe is clearly a player with a lot of promise, having helped Porto win the domestic cup double in Portugal last season, he could be very expensive even with a deal below his release clause.

The Brazilian scored just four goals and made four assists in Liga Portugal last term (Transfermarkt), numbers that do not really stand out on paper for a title-winning team, and at 25 years of age, he's not exactly a young prospect still learning his craft.

Nonetheless, it is still very early in the window, and so the North East club should be looking at other targets for now, with other Brazilians like Gabriel Barbosa and Angelo Gabriel recently linked and showing higher potential.