Newcastle United will make a renewed push to sign Jesse Lingard from Manchester United 'in the next hours', according to Fabrizio Romano. 

The lowdown

Even before the January transfer window opened, it was reported that the 29-year-old was on Newcastle's radar, but with less than a week of trading left, the Tyneside club are beginning to run out of time to bring the Englishman to St James' Park.

Lingard has been limited to 88 minutes of Premier League football at Old Trafford since he returned from his loan spell with West Ham last season, where he plundered nine goals and five assists. He is valued at £18m by Transfermarkt but his contract is due to expire in the summer.

The latest

Romano tweeted on Monday morning that Newcastle were about to make another concerted effort to land Lingard.

He outlined: "Newcastle will push again on Jesse Lingard deal in the next hours. Magpies board working hard to sign Jesse at least until the end of the season, then he'll become a free agent. Negotiations ongoing with both Manchester United and Lingard representatives."

The verdict

It sounds like Newcastle are trying to bring in Lingard on loan, but that may not be the best option for anyone.

This may well be Man United's last opportunity to cash in on the player, who is otherwise set to walk away for nothing in July, so a permanent offer may be accepted more readily. Also, the player may be hesitant to commit long-term given that Newcastle are potentially facing relegation to the Championship, as they currently sit 18th in the Premier League.

To get around that, they could include a cut-price relegation clause in his contract, enabling a top-flight club to swiftly snap him up should they drop out of the division. That said, they may feel pretty confident of staying up if they add Lingard to their ranks based on his incredible form upon enjoying a change of scenery at West Ham this time last year.

In other news, Newcastle are also making moves for this defender