Newcastle: Newcastle United are closing in on the signing of AC Milan defender Malick Thiaw. The centre-back is due to fly to Tyneside on Sunday night to finalize his move to St James Park.

According to BBC, Newcastle have missed out on several transfer targets this summer, including Benjamin Sesko, Hugo Ekitike, Joao Pedro, and James Trafford. However, Thiaw has expressed a keen interest in joining the club.

Manager Eddie Howe mentioned he was “hopeful” of making a breakthrough in the transfer market before Newcastle’s opening day clash against Aston Villa on Saturday. Howe added, “But I have been hopeful for a number of weeks. As I’ve said many times, everyone behind the scenes has been working incredibly hard and has been very keen to get some movement in the transfer market.”

He further elaborated, “But it is difficult and it has to be the right player at the right price. There are a lot of conditions that have to be right for a transfer to go through.” Despite the challenges, Howe remains optimistic about the strength of the team, stating, “I do believe we can still produce a very strong team. The balance of the squad is not quite right and we know that and we hope to adjust that with some of the signings we hope to make. Let’s see what happens.”