At least three reports from Brazil claimed that Eddie Howe’s side have made contact for the signing, and could soon make a bid for the youngster.

Even though that story came out of nothing, it makes a lot of sense. And we’re here to explain why Marcos Leonardo is a reasonable target for Newcastle and any other Premier League clubs.

Just like most of Santos’ home-grown talents, the striker made his debut quite early, at the age of 17. That’s why now, despite being just 20, he already has some decent experience and that shows in his game.

Over the past couple of years, Marcos Leonardo has been showing how much of a goalscorer he is. First with 21 goals in 2022, now with another 21 in 2023 so far.

The reason why he isn’t in Europe yet is simply because of Santos’ strategy. He had been heavily linked to AS Roma and Lazio last summer, but since the club had already sold Deivid Washington and Angelo to Chelsea, they couldn’t lose another attacker, even though they had promised him he’d be sold in that window.

That was a tense situation because Marcos Leonardo could well have rebelled against the Brazilian side, but he didn’t. He not only stayed and committed himself, but is also saving them from relegation, because despite how bad the team is doing, currently standing 16th in a league of 20 clubs, he’s the league’s second top goalscorer.

The striker also impressed at the U-20 World Cup this year, with five goals in five appearances, and there he definitely drew interest from many European sides.

What impresses in Marcos Leonardo the most is that he isn’t just a goalscorer. His speed and strength make him a dangerous weapon in counter-attacks, even though his height and age may fool some who won’t think he’s that strong.

There’s obviously a lot to be polished, especially in terms of finishing. But if we’re talking about the big talents in Brazil, he’s definitely one of the most promising players coming through, and Newcastle investing in him could be wise, especially with Santos reportedly demanding less than €25m.

The Magpies seem fine with their attacking options for now, and it would be good for the Brazilian to arrive with time to adapt and develop before he’s urged to deliver.

The post From Brazil: Why Marcos Leonardo could be a good signing for Newcastle United appeared first on Sport Witness.

The player even had pre-season with Mauricio Pochettino’s side, but wasn’t expected to get many chances in his team, and ended up sent to the City Ground for a season-long spell.

It turns out that he hasn’t been playing a lot at Nottingham Forest, and outlet Premier League Brasil features an interesting story on that situation.

Their report claims that Andrey is currently bothered by his situation, even though he’s keeping his head in the right place to deal with the scenario.

It’s said that despite this is being ‘complicated and evidently uncomfortable situation’, he hasn’t been complaining.

According to PL Brasil, Nottingham Forest do see some quality in the Brazilian, but don’t use him because they plan to give more time to players who are at the club under longer contracts, which is not his case.

Andrey reportedly left a good impression in his few minutes against Liverpool, and now waits for a new chance.

The post Nottingham Forest player bothered by lack of minutes – Club’s policy going against him appeared first on Sport Witness.

That Uruguayan has been speaking to Sport 890 in his homeland, relayed by El Pais, regarding his international future under Marcelo Bielsa.

Bentancur has been out injured since February with a cruciate ligament rupture that saw him spend 245 days on the treatment table.

He returned on Friday in the 2-1 win over Crystal Palace, playing a minute in the second half and making his long-awaited return from the injury absence.

His plan is now to get back to full fitness as soon as possible and compete for a place at Tottenham, where he will have to work hard to get Ange Postecoglou’s favourite pairing of Yves Bissouma and Pape Matar Sarr out of the team.

His focus is also on the national team, though, and he’s revealed he was even ready to go play for Uruguay in September, despite still being out injured.

“The national team is always in contact with me. I always have the hope and desire to go,” he said.

“I have to show that I’m fine. I’m ready to play, I’m no longer injured. If Marcelo Bielsa calls me, I’m there. I had two talks with him about the position I was going to play in and what he wanted from me.

“Then I continued having contact with the doctors. If it was up to me, I would go on the double date in September. The desire and willingness are there.”

The question now is whether Bentancur can force himself back into Tottenham’s team and re-establish himself as the key player he was previously.

That will certainly be difficult given the relationship that has formed between Sarr and Bissouma this season and the performances they’ve put in.

With Tottenham also flying high at the top of the league, it seems unlikely that Postecoglou will be rushing to change his team anytime soon either.

There may be a point where Bentancur looks elsewhere, and it appears there is one transfer he would particularly like at some point, a move to Peñarol.

“I am a fan, and I would love to play for the club,” he added.

“Federico Valverde is crazy. If it were up to him, he would come back now. Two out of three times tells me to play together and try to fight for a Copa Libertadores. The dream is there.”

The post “The dream is there” – Tottenham man reveals transfer he’d “love” and conversations with manager appeared first on Sport Witness.

The Uruguayan has been speaking to Sport 890 in his homeland after making his long-anticipated return from injury over the weekend.

The midfielder has spent the last eight months on the treatment table after suffering a cruciate ligament rupture in February of this year.

That’s seen him spend 254 days on the treatment table and miss 28 Tottenham games to date, including their superb start to the season under new manager Ange Postecoglou.

He made his return to the first team in Friday’s 2-1 win over Crystal Palace, coming on for a minute in the second half of the eventual victory.

That was his first step in his return to full fitness and competing for a starting role, providing competition to the new favoured midfield duo of Pape Matar Sarr and Yves Bissouma.

That’s a battle the Uruguayan is ready to take up it seems, revealing that the medical team at Tottenham have had to hold him back as it is, with his return a month ahead of the initial schedule.

“That February I finished the game, I walked away. When I told the doctor that I felt a crack during the match, he was honest and said it could be the ligament,” he told 100% Deporte.

“I didn’t suffer during recovery. The knee reacted very well to all the stimuli and increased loads during the process. They only took fluids from me three times.

“The last two months my subconscious began to win over me because I was already ready to play. Today they changed the deadlines to avoid relapses, they ask you for almost nine months and they didn’t want me to return until November 21.”

The post Tottenham man reveals injury return is well ahead of schedule – Already keen to get back appeared first on Sport Witness.

Wolverhampton Wanderers striker Matheus Cunha is one of those who’ve been called up for the position, but he hasn’t been given a chance to start under Fernando Diniz so far, and is waiting for the opportunity to try to impress the new boss.

The player was now interviewed by Globo Esporte about that situation, and talked about the big competition there is to win such a wanted place in the national team.

“There’s a lot of competition in the national team. There are a lot of quality players fighting for space, and I realise that I have to be at my best to get a place in the squad,” Matheus Cunha told Globo Esporte.

Despite that, Cunha claimed to be confident about his potential to earn the national team’s number nine in the near future.

“I know the qualities I have, what I can bring to the team and to the proposal that Professor Fernando Diniz has for the team.”

The player also claimed that he’ll always play for Wolves thinking of drawing the national team’s attention.

“I’m going to keep working day in, day out and doing my best here with Wolves, because I know I’ll be watched.”

Since Diniz’s arrival, the striker made three appearances, but was only brought in at the end of the games, and didn’t contribute to any goals.

Featuring for Wolves this season, Cunha has two goals and one assist in 11 games, having scored against Crystal Palace and Bournemouth.

The post “I know I’ll be watched” – Wolves star confident of international chance, despite huge competition appeared first on Sport Witness.

Back in February, the midfielder sustained a serious knee injury and was on the sidelines for most of this year, before returning to the pitch on Friday.

D Sports say ‘now the illusion’ for the Tottenham player is to return to Uruguay’s squad for the upcoming international break.

Both Spurs and Uruguay changed managers whilst the 26-year-old was recovering from injury. The former appointed Ange Postecoglou as their new manager in June, a month after Marcelo Bielsa took charge of La Celeste.

Uruguay will face Argentina and Bolivia in World Cup qualifiers in November and D Sports say the hope is for Bentancur to make it to Bielsa’s squad.

The chances of Bentancur’s return to the national seem high improved after his personal physiotherapist, Daniel Fernández, explained to Radio Sport 890 about the work put in by the player to avoid any further setbacks.

“The return was very calm. Rodrigo has a very important spirit, the professionalism and calmness he has led to him being in good shape and returning,” he said, relayed by D Sports.

“We did a very important job so that he is confident and so that the injured leg does not have any difficulties. The volume of work he did to give stability to the leg is very important.”

The South American’s personal coach has also revealed that Uruguay’s coaching staff are in contact with both the player and Tottenham to learn about his physical condition.

“Uruguay’s technical staff is constantly in contact with Rodrigo and Tottenham. They have all their data. He is fit to play, but the coaching staff will evaluate whether he can play the 100 minutes played today,” Fernández explained.

Tottenham’s next tie is against Chelsea on November 6th, and Bentancur may again be in contention to come off the bench.

The post Tottenham player’s personal coach on ‘volume of work’ midfielder has put in – Dedicating himself to recovery appeared first on Sport Witness.

TNT Sports feature an update on the situation, following reports from Italy saying AC Milan are about to make an offer for him.

The Argentine outlet insists that Manchester City made an approach and came close to placing a bid, but the transfer didn’t happen because the player wanted to feature in the Copa Libertadores.

The latest news from TNT Sports is that Boca Juniors are about to make an offer for a contract renewal. It’s made clear that Barco will ‘hardly stay at the club’, but they want to change his €10m release clause.

There’s a hurry for that new deal to be signed in the coming weeks, so Manchester City should probably get ready for a tougher competition for his signing in the January transfer window.

Boca Juniors will be playing the Copa Libertadores final against Fluminense on Saturday, and it’s very likely his situation will become clearer after the tournament. Either way, that specific issue will now be gone.

The post Manchester City set to get new chance at signing – Summer obstacle now gone appeared first on Sport Witness.

It’s journalist Jorge Nicola who comes up to say it won’t be easy for those clubs to bring the midfielder home.

In a first video, he showed up saying the salary Scarpa receives from Nottingham Forest, or his current club Olympiacos, is an ‘enormous obstacle’ for any deal with Brazilian clubs.

The midfielder earns more than all the biggest stars of those clubs, and that means they’d only go for his signing in case of a loan, with the Tricky Trees covering part of his salary.

It’s also said Scarpa wants to persist a little more in European football before accepting a move back to Brazil.

Then in another video, Nicola talks specially about São Paulo. A source from the club said there’s ‘zero chance’. This person did not rule out they may have made contact for the signing, but made it clear they won’t pay for that type of operation.

Scarpa is loaned to Olympiacos until the end of the season, and has a contract with Nottingham Forest until 2026.

The post ‘Zero chance’ – Club source scoffs at idea of signing Nottingham Forest player appeared first on Sport Witness.

The Colombian joined the Magpies from Parma in February 1996 and spent over two years with them before returning to the Italian club in the summer of 1998.

Asprilla has told ESPN F360, relayed by Antena 2, that Newcastle wanted to sign Davor Šuker, and as part of the deal, they were willing to let him join Real Madrid. However, the double deal didn’t take shape because of one key individual.

“At Newcastle, they asked me if I wanted to play for Real Madrid, to swap for Davor Šuker. He was going to England and I was going to Spain, but Capello was there and he didn’t accept,” he said.

Šuker spent three years with Los Blancos before leaving them for Arsenal in 1999 while Fabio Capello had two spells with Real Madrid during his managerial career. The latter’s first spell lasted for 12 months during the 1996/97 season.

The deal to take Šuker to Newcastle and the South American to Real Madrid would have likely been pushed forward during the summer of 1996.

Asprilla was a fan favourite during his time at Newcastle and was part of Kevin Keegan’s squad which finished second in the 1995/96 season. The former striker managed 18 goals and 19 assists from 63 games for the Magpies.

The post South American reveals failed Real Madrid to Newcastle United transfer – Was part of big double deal appeared first on Sport Witness.

That’s according to Tutto Juve, who mention the Blues when explaining Juventus interest in the 19-year-old.

This year, Barco has been used as a left wing-back, left-back and also as a left winger, and has managed a goal and three assists from 27 games. His displays and potential have seen him draw the attention of Chelsea and other clubs.

The Premier League side have set their sights on the teenager and it’s even claimed they have ‘stepped up efforts’ to sign him.

Mauricio Pochettino has Ben Chilwell, Marc Cucurella and Ian Maatsen as the three left-backs in his squad.

Despite having three options, the report claims Chelsea consider one or more of their left-backs are facing an uncertain future, which is why they are ‘looking for a solid replacement’ for the same position.

Tutto Juve explain the west London club are looking at signing Barco ‘next year’, without specifying whether that’s January or after this season.

It won’t be easy for Chelsea to land the Argentina U20 international as the outlet states they will face ‘stiff competition’ from both the Turin club and Manchester City.

Barco has a deal lasting until December 2024 and his immediate focus will be on the Copa Libertadores final against Fluminense this weekend.

The post Chelsea have ‘stepped up efforts’ to sign versatile player – Blues will face ‘stiff competition’ appeared first on Sport Witness.