As per David Ornstein of The Athletic, Newcastle United have agreed a fee of around £38m to purchase Harvey Barnes from Leicester city.
Subject to the agreement of personal terms between the player and the club, which are not expected to be an issue, the deal will now be completed.
Although the expected fee is slighly over the 25-year-old’s current market value of €35m, according to Transfermarkt, Eddie Howe’s side will be picking up a player that has demonstrated his top flight ability several times over the previous two years. The Englishman has scored 19 and assisted 11 in 56 League appearances for an underperforming Leicester side- who have already sold starman James Maddison to Tottenham for over £40m as they look to free up funds following their relegation to the Championship last season.
Furthermore, The Geordies will need to ‘sell to buy’ due to FFP concerns this summer, they are said to have been confident about signing Barnes for a while- mainly due to Allan Saint-Maximin’s likely departure to Saudi Arabia.
According to Fabrizio Romano, Al Ahli have bid €25m for the 26-year old, however The Geordies are said to be holding out for more. Despite this, the move is still expected to eventually go through, which would see the Frenchman join Chelsea goalkeeper Édouard Mendy and ex-Liverpool No.9 Roberto Firmino at the Saudi club.
The exciting winger was signed from OGC Nice for €18m in July 2019 and, although often hindered by injuries, he has become a beloved figure at St. James Park since, playing a pivotal role in helping them maintain their Premier League status under previous owner Mike Ashley. In the most recent season however, Saint-Maximin played a bit part role in Howe’s side, scoring once and assisting five in 25 league appearances- 12 of which were starts.
As they look to improve on their fourth place finish last season and compete in Champions League football for the first time since the 2002/03 season, Newcastle will hope the incoming Barnes can make an impact next season and become a key player alongside their other major summer signing Sandro Tonali, who joined from AC Milan for €70m.
Travis Levison | Get Football
