Henry-esque striker Hugo Ekitike snubbed West Ham for Newcastle but now there’s a Real big twist in the tale it seems.
It is becoming one of the recurring themes of the summer window seeing West Ham and Newcastle mentioned in the same transfer stories.
Young French striker Ekitike was one of the headline names of the January transfer window and will certainly be familiar to fans of West Ham and Newcastle.
David Moyes and Eddie Howe were reportedly battling it out to sign Stade Reims striker Ekitike a few months ago.
French outlets Le10Sport and Get French Football News – as well as Sky Sports – revealed that West Ham had submitted bids to Reims for the rapid 20-year-old who has been compared to Thierry Henry.
In the end neither West Ham or Newcastle could get a deal done for the exciting Ekitike.
West Ham and Newcastle were said to be ready to revisit a move for the striker in the summer transfer window (But! Football Club – as also reported by GFFN). And both clubs have been linked with Ekitike again of late.
According to The Guardian and Sky Sports recently Newcastle looked to have beaten West Ham in the race for Ekitike, reporting that the Magpies were closing in on the signing after Reims accepted an offer of just £25.6m plus around £4m in add-ons.
In the modern market – and given Ekitike’s age and huge potential – that looked an absolute steal.
But it seems it was too good to be true for the Geordies.
Because Henry-esque striker Ekitike may have snubbed West Ham for Newcastle but now there’s a Real twist in the tale – literally.
According to the likes of L’Equipe and Football Espana, Newcastle face a new threat for Ekitike from the world’s biggest club, Real Madrid.
Real tried and failed to sign Ekitike’s fellow Frenchman Kylian Mbappe.
But now they could beat Newcastle and West Ham to the man dubbed the new Henry and Mbappe – Ekitike.
“The newly-rich Newcastle United have been heavily linked with Ekitike in recent weeks, which would pit Real Madrid up against another financial power from the Middle East,” L’Equipe and Football Espana report.
“If they can offer him an important role at the Santiago Bernabeu, they may have more luck with this endeavour…
“If Ekitike were to end up in Madrid, he would likely be the first option behind Benzema and could learn from one of the great strikers of the last decade.”
After reportedly being snubbed by Ekitike in favour of a more lucrative move to Newcastle, West Ham will now be hoping he ends up at Real Madrid instead.
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