Kaveh Solhekol has dropped some big Newcastle United transfer news involving Diego Carlos while speaking live on Sky Sports.
The Lowdown: Developing story
The Carlos to Newcastle story is developing rapidly by the day, as the St. James' Park faithful remain hopeful that they can get a deal done.
This is despite the central defender starting for Sevilla in their La Liga game against Valencia on Wednesday night, after reportedly handing in a transfer request in order to try and push through a move to the North East.
Carlos has also seemingly denied that he is happy to stay at Sevilla in a recent social media post, suggesting that a move could still be on the cards if both teams can come to an agreement.
The Latest: On-air update
Speaking on Sky Sports' The Transfer Show, journalist Solhekol revealed (via Sky Sports' The Transfer Centre) live on air (19/01/22, 17:07-17:08pm) that another unnamed club in the Premier League have now bid for Carlos, but he would still like to move to Tyneside:
"In the last hour, we've been told another Premier League club is trying to sign Diego Carlos and they have made a bid for him.
"Newcastle had been in talks to sign him. He's a very experienced Brazilian defender, who is part of the best defence in La Liga this season.
"Our information is that the player would like to leave Sevilla and to come and play for Newcastle, so much so he handed in a transfer request yesterday.
"So it looked like there were positive signs that he could be going to Newcastle. Then another Premier League club came in for him today, they have matched Newcastle's £30m bid. That has complicated the situation.
"I'm also told there's an Italian club trying to sign Carlos. They have suggested a price that they are willing to pay, and that's not as much as £30m, so I think we can discard them for the time being."
He continued: "We don't have information at the moment about who that other club is. You could speculate, there are clubs out there who are looking to buy a centre-back.
"Who are the clubs who have the finances in place to make a bid of £30m for Carlos - it's not a very long list. This evening, we'll do out best to find out who that is."
The Verdict: Just get it done
The Carlos saga has dragged on long enough now, and the Magpies need to just get the deal done as soon as possible, even if that means entering a bidding war, especially with crucial games like the one against Leeds United coming up in the top flight.
La Liga expert Kevin Campbell believes that the defender is ‘right up Newcastle’s street’ (Football Insider), while European football expert Andy Brassell claims that he is a ‘real leader at the back’ (The Daily Express), something the Toon have arguable lacked this season.
Nicknamed ‘The Beast‘, Carlos is exactly the kind of player you would want in a relegation dogfight, and so they need to get this deal done quickly, with the growing interest and competition for his signature.
In other news, find out which 'exceptional' star NUFC are now 'interested' in here!