Newcastle United ready to sign defender from Premier League rival as Spurs prepare to lose £55m man

Welcome back from your bank holiday breaks and into the waiting arms of the world of Premier League transfer rumours – as ever, we’ve combed the global media for the biggest and boldest stories of the last 24 hours for your reading delectation, and we kick today’s round-up off at St. James’ Park, where Newcastle United are reportedly stepping up plans to bolster an injury-ridden defensive line.

With Jamaal Lascelles and Sven Botman both likely to be missing well into next season, Eddie Howe and his transfer team are apparently prioritising a new centre-back for the summer – and according to HITC, they may well have found their man in the form of Bournemouth’s Lloyd Kelly.

The 25-year-old, who is a free agent at the end of the season, can play across the defence and drew considerable transfer interest in the winter, with several Premier League and Serie A teams supposedly interested, but he’s stayed put at the Vitality Stadium so far. Nevertheless, the Magpies are “pushing” to sign Kelly on a free transfer once the season draws to a close.

The 3AM Verdict: Kelly is a versatile and very decent defender with excellent positional sense, but there’s definitely a bit of disconnect between his statistical output in terms of tackling, passing and turnovers and the quality of the teams he’s been linked to, which range from Newcastle now to AC Milan back in January. But on a free transfer? It’s hardly a bad bet.

Spurs stars could be on the way out

Let’s head down to North London now, with some news about the futures of two Tottenham Hotspur stars. For starters, Football Insider report that Argentine midfielder Giovani Lo Celso wants to leave Spurs “due to his lack of game time,” and is “pushing for an exit.”

Signed for £55m back in 2019, Lo Celso has been hampered by injury this season but has failed to find favour with Ange Postecoglou and seems to want to out – and the article also reports that Spurs won’t exactly stand in his way. Apparently, they are “keen to cash in.”

Elsewhere, Fabrizio Romano took to Not-Twitter-Any-More-For-Some-Reason to tell us that the club have yet to make a decision on whether to activate loan star Timo Werner’s buy clause. The former Chelsea man has scored two goals for his new club but as yet, they haven’t figured out whether or not they want to keep hold of him.

The 3AM Verdict: Lo Celso is a talented player but it’s never really happened for him in England and it makes sense for both player and club to part ways. Werner is more interesting – he still doesn’t look like the free-scoring forward who banged so many goals in for RB Leipzig a few years ago, but he’s made some important contributions and could be a solid depth piece in the long run. Apparently he would cost £14.5m if they want to sign him permanently, which isn’t too expensive…

Spurs and Seagulls ready to swoop for rising star

Finally, some news that suggests Spurs won’t just be letting players go this summer. According to Sport Witness, via the Mexican media, both Tottenham and Brighton & Hove Albion are interested in 23-year-old Colombian goalkeeper Kevin Mier, who plies his trade in La Liga MX with Cruz Azul.

A sweeper-keeper with some strong ball-playing skills, his performances have recently drawn the attention of Brighton – and apparently Spurs have been tracking him for some time. No formal offers yet, apparently, but Cruz Azul would be willing to let him go for an “attractive” bid.

The 3AM Verdict: The article suggests that he would be a back-up goalkeeper for both sides, which is probably fair, but that shouldn’t suggest he couldn’t press for a first-team place under the right circumstances – he’s already an Under-23 international with his nation and is earning some good reviews in Mexico. His save percentage needs some work, but he’s excellent at cutting long balls out and comfortable when it’s at his feet, so he could suit a team who play a high line. Spurs certainly fit that description. He cost his club around £2.75m back in January, to give you an idea of the price point.