Report: £34m star was so close to joining Newcastle last month, his club had a replacement lined up

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Newcastle United enjoyed a very fruitful January transfer window.

The Magpies moved early to bring Kieran Trippier and Chris Wood to St James’ Park.

Newcastle fans then had to wait until the final few days for more recruits.

Then, the Magpies got three more deals over the line in Bruno Guimaraes, Matt Targett and Dan Burn.

However, there were a couple of players Newcastle tried for late on, but to no avail.

One of those was Reims striker Hugo Ekitike, who reportedly decided against a late switch to Tyneside.

Despite Ekitike’s club reportedly accepting Newcastle’s offer, the youngster ultimately decided to stay put.

“The player has now had time to think about things,” Keith Downie told Sky Sports on Monday (31/1, 16:23).

“His feeling is that it’s too big a decision for him to make at this late stage. He will not be moving to Newcastle.”

Footmercato has now revealed just how close Reims came to losing Ekitike to the Magpies.

The French outlet claims Newcastle and Reims had reached agreement over a £34million move for the 19-year-old.

Indeed, the Ligue 1 club’s hierarchy had reportedly resigned themselves to Ekitike leaving.

So much so, in fact, that they had already set their sights on another striker to replace him.

Ekitike made the right call – TBR View

While it may have been disappointing for Newcastle not to land the exciting Ekitike, he made the right decision.

The teenager would’ve had just a few hours to sort everything out and then move to a club in a different country.

Ekitike would’ve had the spotlight on him and considerable pressure in Newcastle’s fight against relegation.

And as is often the case with big-money signings, that adds even more pressure on their shoulders.

If he wasn’t ready to make the move, then it was the best course of action.

Ekitike can now see out the season without any major upheaval in a familiar environment.

And in the summer, if he so wishes, he can plan a move properly and with plenty of notice.

This means a more focused and ready player, who can get a good pre-season under his belt and then hopefully hit the ground running when the league starts.