Newcastle now in talks to sign key Barcelona target as cut-price deal emerges

After Barcelona swooped in to sign Anthony Gordon for a hefty £69m, Newcastle United are on the hunt for revenge and could land a key defensive target as a result.

The Magpies are set to get their transfer business underway nice and early this year, with the arrival of Ewen Jaouen from Ligue 2 side Reims now reportedly imminent.

The shot-stopper will replace Aaron Ramsdale, who has returned to Southampton after his loan spell, and push Nick Pope all the way for a starting place under Eddie Howe.

Jaouen hasn’t come cheap, either. Newcastle will reportedly pay around £21m to welcome the Reims man and will hope that their investment proves worthwhile when Pope eventually bows out.

The France U21 international could be one of many arrivals in Tyneside this summer following such a disappointing campaign. Just who arrives next is the big question.

According to Estadio Deportivo, Newcastle are now in talks to sign Natan from Real Betis this summer, hijacking Barcelona, who have already held a meeting with their La Liga rivals about the central defender.

At 25 years old, the defender is in the prime of his career and could become the perfect partner for Malick Thiaw at the heart of Newcastle’s backline.

Howe could certainly do with an additional centre-back, too. When assessing his options, he’ll find an injury-prone Sven Botman, a 34-year-old Fabian Schar and a 34-year-old Dan Burn. That is far from ideal and an arrival like Natan should sit top of the Magpies’ to-do list.

Natan could help transform Newcastle backline

It’s backline which is crying out for consistency that it last received when Botman and Schar stood alongside each other. That was when Newcastle were at their best, but those days and that partnership is long gone. As talented as they both are, one is proving to be unreliable on the injury front and the other is likely approaching the end of his career.

There’s been a glimpse of the future in the last 12 months courtesy of Thiaw, but he can’t do it alone. The arrival of Natan would form a consistent partnership at long last.

Beating Barcelona to any deal will always be a difficult task, but Newcastle certainly owe them one after the Gordon sale and, more importantly, they need a central defender.

They could yet land a cut-price deal, too. Whilst Betis set a €45m (£39m) asking price last summer, they could now settle for a lower fixed price if bonuses reach their initial valuation. That’s a major boost for Newcastle if they’ve still got SCR concerns.

Read next: Newcastle lead race to sign “exciting” Arsenal player