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London (AFP) – Newcastle boss Eddie Howe said on Friday the club would remain active in the January transfer window while Brazilian midfielder Bruno Guimaraes is set to join Lyon.
Three months after a Saudi sovereign wealth fund takeover, the Magpies are flexing their financial muscles in a bid to avoid relegation from the Premier League.
While Newcastle have won just two games all season and are in the relegation zone, they are just one point from safety.
Howe’s squad have already been bolstered this month by the arrivals of England international Kieran Trippier and striker Chris Wood from relegation rivals Burnley.
Guimaraes appears to be next through the door at St. James’ Park with a deal worth up to £40m ($54m) reportedly agreed between the clubs for the 24-year-old , which is currently in international service with Brazil .
“We hope we are getting closer to finalizing a transfer,” Howe told a press conference from a training camp in Jeddah. “You can guess (who it is) if you want but there will be no confirmation from me. »
And the former Bournemouth boss expects more business to be done before Monday’s transfer deadline.
“From my point of view, I don’t imagine that would be the end of our interest in bringing in new players,” he added.
“Will it come true, who knows? Things change very late in this window, as everyone knows it can be quite unpredictable in the last few days.
” We are open. We are working hard to improve the team. Our biggest goal is to give the team the best chance of staying in the league. »
The takeover backed by the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) has been strongly criticized by human rights groups.
Accusations of sportswashing by the Gulf Kingdom resurfaced this week as the Newcastle side traveled to Saudi Arabia.
Howe said he met with club president and PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan.
“I spoke with the chairman, we met him and it was a great experience to hear his thoughts on the club, its vision and the future,” added Howe.
“The players enjoyed that, I enjoyed that and a lot of people around the PIF team also came through here, so it was a really good experience to bring everyone together. »
© 2022 AFP
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