Newcastle open talks to sign £35m star

Is it Groundhog Day at Newcastle United?

It certainly feels as such for the Magpies persuasion, who have seen Victor Munoz swiped from under their nose by Liverpool. This has dredged up a few unsavoury memories, with the Reds hijacking the Tynesiders’ deal for Hugo Ekitike last summer, before signing Alexander Isak in a record-breaking deal.

Newcastle have been put through the wringer over the past year, struggling to make it all click since beating Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final, lifting the trophy at Wembley, using that momentum to secure passage into the Champions League.

Eddie Howe cannot sit and feel sorry for himself, though. The Magpies can ill-afford another sub-standard season, and they need to find a Munoz replacement quickly.

Newcastle already in talks for Munoz alternative

Replacing Anthony Gordon was never going to be easy, but supporters will brook no excuses after the frustrations of last summer. Gordon has joined Barcelona for £69m, and there are funds available to replace him.

But can the Toon get a knockout deal over the line? Munoz is signing for Andoni Iraola’s Liverpool, but he’s not the only up-and-coming winger on the market, with Howe and St. James’ Park’s new technical director Ross Wilson setting their sights on an exciting alternative.

According to TEAMtalk, Newcastle have already opened talks with Said El Mala’s representatives, eager to strike a deal for the FC Koln winger ahead of the new campaign.

The Tynesiders will need to be careful, though. Tottenham Hotspur are also on his case, and given that he is valued in the €40m (£35m) bracket – the same ballpark as Munoz, incidentally – then there is every reason that a rival suitor such as Spurs look to snap him up for a shrewd fee.

Why El Mala is even better than Victor Munoz

El Mala is only 19, but he has excelled in the Bundesliga this season, breaking into the Koln first team and emerging as one of the most prolific young wingers in the world.

Munoz is more ‘Gordon coded’, a fast and uncontainable winger, darting this way and that, but El Mala is skilful himself, only more reserved and conservative in the way that he unleashes his physicality and pace.

Described as “the most direct winger in Europe” by data analyst Spencer Mossman, El Mala is the real deal, a front-footed winger who is anything but afraid to take on opponents down the touchline.

Perhaps more importantly, El Mala is a natural-born goalscorer, and he could prove a jackpot signing in that regard, someone who could make an even greater impact than Munoz, who would also arrive in the Premier League as a raw winger, yet to realise his full potential.

He doesn’t see so much of the ball, averaging only half of Munoz’s passes per league game in 2025/26, but El Mala is a more potent goalscoring threat, and now that Gordon has followed Isak out of the gates, it’s clear that this profile could bear dividends for a Newcastle side lacking an edge in attack.

El Mala has elements to work on. He needs to be more active and dynamic in the build-up, not just making the impact at the end of a well-spun attack.

But he has so much potential, and it’s remarkable to see the teenager reveal such quality in the final third from the start of his senior career.

There’s no doubt that missing out on Munoz was a big blow for Newcastle, but if Howe and Wilson can get a deal for El Mala over the finish line, the Spaniard will be little more than an afterthought as the Magpies swoop upward once again.