Newcastle’s feel-good moment having signed Joelinton from TSG Hoffenheim in a club-record deal may be short-lived, as the Mirror understand Manchester United are plotting a fresh bid for Sean Longstaff.
The Red Devil’s interest in the Toon product has been well documented throughout the summer, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer intent on recruiting young, home-grown talents that can help rebuild his limping outfit at Old Trafford.
Having completed deals for Crystal Palace’s Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Swansea City’s Dan James and retaining Marcus Rashford, the former Man Utd hitman turned head coach has now placed Longstaff as a priority target.
Solskjaer’s £50million capture of Wan-Bissaka, however, has hindered his efforts to acquire Longstaff, as Magpies executives feel the figure the Old Trafford side spent on the England U21 set the benchmark.
Manchester United chiefs feel our £50million asking price is too much for a player that only made nine appearances in the top-flight before his breakthrough campaign was cut short with a knee injury in March. Instead, they intend to push through with negotiations at £30million, feeling as if their valuation better matches what Longstaff has so far displayed in his budding career.
This figure still represents a £5million increase on the previous speculated £25million figure Executive Vice Chairman Ed Woodward had sanctioned, but is unlikely to be enough to convince Newcastle chiefs that a sale would be beneficial.
Giving Longstaff the green light to negotiate with the Old Trafford side would also cause friction between the board and Steve Bruce within the first weeks of his Tyneside tenure, as the former Sheffield Wednesday boss is keen to see the North Shields-born talent play a key role in his St James’ Park plans.