Keith Downie: Newcastle ‘close’ to second signing after moving on from “No.1 choice”

Sky Sports’ Keith Downie believes Newcastle are closing in on a deal for James Trafford, feeling the club will come to an agreement with Burnley as talks continue.

Speaking on the Loaded Mag transfer show last night, the North-East reporter admitted that our opening offer – thought to be around £15-£16m – was turned down by the Clarets, but feels it’s a telling sign that talks have continued; a clear indication that the two parties are hopeful of striking an agreement.

Interestingly, Downie revealed that Aaron Ramsdale was the “No.1 choice”, with Eddie Howe a huge fan and recruiter Andy Howe the man who brought the Arsenal stopper to Bournemouth several years ago. However, it’s believed the finances involved made that a tough deal to do, with him on over £100,000-per-week and expecting guaranteed starts; which we may not have been able to offer alongside Nick Pope.

Here’s what Downie had to say on Trafford and Ramsdale when speaking on the Loaded Mag’s Youtube Channel:

“Look, I think the Trafford sounds like it’s probably going to happen. I think it will be quite close in terms of valuation. The word was that while the first offer (£15-16m) had been turned down, they were still in talks. And normally when you hear that it makes you think that the two parties are probably quite happy to come to some kind of conclusion and they’re probably just trying to eke a little bit more money out of Newcastle.

“I think the Trafford’s situation makes sense for Newcastle because look, there’s no doubt Ramsdale was the No.1 choice. They would have loved to throw him in. Eddie Howe’s nephew, Andy Howe, one of Newcastle’s head recruitment guys…he was the one that pretty much found Ramsdale a number of years ago and signed him for Bournemouth, turning him into a £30m goalkeeper. He spotted him and it was one of the first big deals that Andy Howe did.

“Without doubt Eddie loves him as a player. I think his wages were prohibitive – I think would have been really difficult to bring him in on more than £100,000 pounds a week when you’ve got Nick Pope on significantly less than that. And you know, they’re both probably at the same level in terms of England, so there’s not a lot between them. And I think if Ramsdale comes in, he’s only coming in to be number one. Nick Pope is not going to be happy to be in No.2.

“While that may happen next summer (Pope becoming the No.2), given his age and his injury record, I just feel someone (Trafford) who’s happier to come in, learn from Pope and be No.2 for a season or season and a half, I think it just would fit better within the club. I think Ramsdale coming in would’ve caused a real problem for Eddie Howe.

“I think with everything Trafford’s got and everything Howe normally looks for a player, you can see why that would happen. I know he’s had a difficult season – I think he got dropped out of the team for the last last couple of months – but you speak to anyone involved in football, any players and young English players or agents, they all rate this guy. Although he’s maybe not been perfect last season, I think the real feeling is that he will come good much in the way that Anthony Gordon has in the last year.”