Newcastle United have received a major setback in their pursuit of 26-year-old Al-Hilal midfielder Ruben Neves.
According to Ben Jacobs via GIVEMESPORT, Newcastle United are looking to reinforce their midfield in the winter transfer window following the ban of Sandro Tonali, and they have their eyes set on Ruben Neves. While the player seems keen on making a quickfire return to the Premier League, the Magpies still have a few major roadblocks in their way.
Newcastle United enjoyed an impressive season last time out as they managed to finish inside the top four of the Premier League and qualify for the UEFA Champions League. During the summer transfer window, they signed multiple players to bolster their squad.
Their biggest move was the acquisition of Sandro Tonali from AC Milan. He had an excellent start to life in England but things have fallen apart as the 23-year-old has been banned for ten months because of illegal betting.
His ban has altered the plans of Eddie Howe. The Newcastle boss is now looking for a replacement, and Al-Hilal’s Ruben Neves is one of their targets. He could be an ideal replacement for the 23-year-old, and they are looking to sign him on loan from Al-Hilal, the Saudi club that he joined a few months back for a reported fee of £47 million deal.
Even the player is open to a quickfire return to the Premier League. But, things are not as simple as they look despite both clubs being owned by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund. The Magpies’ sporting director Dan Ashworth has confirmed that currently there are no barriers stopping such a loan move between two clubs with the same ownership.
But, things could change in the near future as Premier League sides will hold a vote to decide on whether to fast-track a temporary ban on loan moves between associated clubs at the next shareholders’ meeting which will take place later this month. This could be a big blow for Newcastle.
On top of that, Jacobs has revealed that Al-Hilal do not want to sanction such a loan move. Both clubs might be owned by the PIF. But there are a lot of personnel involved, and everyone does not share the same idea. People at Al-Hilal do not want to lose out on Neves midway in the season and the Magpies chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan has no control over the situation.
