Newcastle leading race to sign £35m Arthur Atta to replace Sandro Tonali

Newcastle United have now entered pole position to sign their ideal replacement for Sandro Tonali, having already wrapped up their first signing of the summer in goalkeeper Ewen Jaouen.

Arsenal hold talks to sign Tonali from Newcastle

Losing Anthony Gordon was frustrating, but not many players can say no to the Nou Camp, and the winger received the blessing of fans in Tyneside to complete a dream £69m move earlier this month as a result.

The Magpies bounced back by securing an £18m deal for highly-rated Reims goalkeeper Jaouen, but it could be a difficult summer for those at St James’ Park.

After missing out on Champions League qualification, and European football altogether for that matter, they could still lose Tonali.

Recent reports have even claimed that Arsenal have held recent talks to sign the Italian in what would be a major blow for Newcastle. They already lost Alexander Isak to a Premier League rival one year ago.

To suffer the same fate 12 months on would sum up their current misery.

They’re not just waiting around for Tonali to leave, though. Indeed, those on Tyneside have already set their sights on the man who could replace the midfielder.

Newcastle leading race to sign £35m star

With interest in Tonali only set to increase, the Magpies have entered the market for the heir to his midfield throne.

According to Messaggero Venet in Italy, Newcastle are now in pole position to sign Arthur Atta from Udinese and those at St James’ Park want him to become their Tonali replacement.

Udinese value their midfielder at around €40m (£35m), which is a price that is well in Newcastle’s range following the departure of Gordon and potentially others.

The numbers expose the extent of the task on Newcastle’s hands if Tonali leaves this summer. The Italian is dominant out of possession and is at a level that Atta is yet to reach.

The upside to the Udinese man is that he’s still just 22 years old and has an eye for goal from midfield. After a season of goalscoring struggles, that trait could prove to be invaluable for the Magpies.

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