On 16 July, Paris Saint-Germain announced the signing of Hugo Ekitike after rejecting interest from Newcastle.
The 20-year-old has joined Paris Saint-Germain on a season-long deal that is expected to turn into a permanent deal 25.5 million pounds next summer
Interestingly, Ekitike joined the Ligue 1 champions despite Newcastle paying him and Reims more money.
Now the youngster has revealed why he turned down the Magpies in favor of Paris Saint-Germain.
What’s the matter?
Well, Ekitike seems to have a lot of respect for Newcastle, but wants to stress that he couldn’t rule out PSG.
talk to le10sportThe France Under-20 international said: “I’m not putting off everything that Newcastle have done for me to come. If I was going to go abroad I would definitely go there. But if Paris Saint-Germain want you and you’re French, no. You can refuse. All those who showed their place were big clubs.
If Paris Saint-Germain were not interested in Ekitike, he would definitely join Newcastle.
The Reims-born striker also appears to be grateful to Newcastle for making the effort to pursue them.
In the end, Eddie Howe and Dan Ashworth – Newcastle’s director of football – lost a battle after PSG got involved.
If Newcastle had hired Luis Campos as director of football instead of Ashworth – the man who really wanted the job – things could have been different, as Ekitike admits he has a close relationship with the Portuguese negotiator.
The number 44 of Paris Saint-Germain continued: I had an appointment with Luis (Campus) that was very valuable for me. Not long ago we talked a lot, he is someone I respect a lot. “Before this transfer, I wanted to come to Paris Saint-Germain, but he convinced me more.”
PSG have a Hugo Ekitike replacement for Newcastle
Interestingly, Christophe Gaultier now has two Newcastle strikers to admire.
Apart from Ekitike, PSG also have Arno Kalimundo, a striker who is said to be a target for Newcastle and Leeds.
PSG can therefore apologize for stealing Ekitike from the Magpies by sanctioning the transfer of Kalimundo, who was the subject of a £20million bid from Leeds.
Keep an eye on this situation as we will be very surprised if Newcastle don’t sign a striker this summer.
In other news, Nottingham Forest were trying to secure the Europa League double for just £8.5m.
https://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2022/07/29/26m-man-admits-he-nearly-joined-newcastle-earlier-this-month-calls-magpies-a-big-club/ ?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=26m-man-admits-he-nearly-joined-newcastle-Earlier-this-month-calls-magpies-a-big-club The £26m man admits he nearly joined Newcastle earlier this month has been joined. The Magpies are a “big” club.
