Newcastle United are reportedly ‘leading’ the race to sign Real Madrid winger Rodrygo this summer as the La Liga club draw closer to signing Kylian Mbappe, and the Magpies could capture the Brazilian for what would be a bargain £33 million.
The Galacticos look to heavily reinforce their squad ahead of next season, with it having already been revealed that they are keen on a six-man clear-out at the end of the current campaign, and Rodrygo could also become surplus to requirements.
And that has prompted the Magpies to move for the 21-year-old who, according to Sport, are already at the ‘front of the queue’ to sign the player.
After signing a pre-contract agreement with Madrid in June 2018, Rodrygo then finally completed his move to the Santiago Bernabeu 12 months later, arriving on a six-year-deal from Brazilian side Santos for a rumoured fee of around €45 million at just 18-years-old.
The youngster got off to the perfect start after scoring on his debut within a minute of action for his new side in September 2019, before scoring the perfect hattrick in a 6-0 UEFA Champions League win over Galatasaray two months later - becoming the second youngest player to score a treble in the competition.
After scoring nine goals in 59 appearances during his first two seasons at the club, securing the Spanish Super Cup and La Liga in his first campaign, things haven’t gone quite as swimmingly this term for the Brazilian, who has fallen behind Marco Asensio in the pecking order.
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And with Madrid continuously being linked with a move for French superstar Kylian Mbappe in the summer following the expiry of his Paris Saint-Germain contract, things don’t look to be getting any easier for Rodrygo.
Despite signing him for €45m, Los Blancos are willing to accept slightly less at €40m (£35m) in order to get him off their books at the end of the campaign, and according to the report by Sport, the Magpies are leading the race for his signature.
It would represent an audacious move from Eddie Howe’s side, but with their endless supply of cash following their multi-million takeover in October, anything is achievable now that they have become the richest club in the world.
Tempting the 21-year-old Brazilian to the north east may prove difficult, and he may be willing to fight for his place in the Spanish capital, but the assurance that he would be a guaranteed starter in the Premier League would also be hard to ignore.
And Newcastle already have two Brazilian links in the form of midfield pair Joelinton and Bruno Guimaraes, with the latter having recently featured with the Real Madrid star in the Selecao’s national team in March’s international break.
Rodrygo will be desperate to play a part in Brazil’s World Cup adventure in Qatar at the end of the year and his best chance of achieving that will be to play regular first-team football, rather than falling further down the pecking order at Los Blancos, which could work in Newcastle’s favour.
