When the super-rich Saudis took over, Newcastle were expected to go on a rampant spending spree on reinforcements and buying success like Chelsea, Manchester City or PSG once did with rich owners. But Newcastle have so far operated rather differently and more cautiously… And made it a success by qualifying for the Champions League after 21 years.With the exception of Alexander Isak’s €70,000,000 transfer, almost all other transfers in Newcastle’s Arab era were in the Premier League. And mostly they were investments in young players. They paid serious money for reinforcements like Bruno Guimaraes, Sven Botman or Anthony Gordon, but all of it was in the range of Premier League prices and mostly paid off. Newcastle’s next big bet will be one of the biggest talents in Spanish football – Gabri Veiga.🚨💣 JUST IN: Reported Real Madrid target Gabri Veiga is very close to joining Newcastle. @marca #rmalive 🇪🇸 pic.twitter.com/DowDFWTEfA— Madrid Zone (@theMadridZone) May 31, 2023 Madridian outlet Marca reports tonight that Celta’s prospective midfielder is on the right track to join Newcastle in a transfer worth 30,000,000 euros. That’s how much his buyout clause is and Newcastle are prepared to pay it and get the deal done as soon as possible. It is only left to reach an agreement with the player on his terms…Veiga is 21 years old and is a versatile midfielder who can cover all positions from “six” to “ten”. He made his debut for the senior team three years ago, got a chance ‘on a spoon’ for two seasons and then exploded this season. First of all thanks to the Portuguese strategist Carlos Carvalhal who launched him as a starter and gave him full freedom in the game as a playmaker who plays behind Iago Aspas and scores goals. In the “top five” leagues, he was the most effective football player among players born in 2003 and younger. This season, he scored nine goals in 23 matches and was an absolute revelation of the Primera Division.When the wider football public got to know Veiga and when richer clubs were eyeing him, Celta tried to extend his contract and increase the buyout clause of 30,000,000 euros, but it was too late. Veiga became a client of the well-known agent Pini Zahavi, who advised him not to sign anything because he knew that many would gladly pay the mentioned 30,000,000 euros and that the player would be in a more favorable situation. Zahavi has been working in the football market for a long time, he cooperated with the world’s biggest clubs, and most often with the Premier League.##NAJAVA_MECA_7292891##Newcastle made bringing in an offensive midfielder a priority at the beginning of the transfer window, the names of James Maddison from Leicester and Dominic Szoboszlai from Leipzig were mentioned, but their price was higher and they settled for a lesser-known and cheaper, but potentially more promising option.Although Real Madrid were also mentioned as being interested in Veiga, no concrete steps were taken because Los Blancos threw all their cards at bringing Jude Bellingham and thus opened a clear path for Newcastle to go after Veiga.
