Report: £46m player's agent seen at UCL side, Newcastle wanted him in January

By Dylan Walsh

Sven Botman’s agent was last night seen attending AC Milan’s Serie A win against Lazio, with the Dutch defender missing out on a move to Newcastle United in January.

According to CalcioMercato, the Dutchman’s representatives were at the San Siro on Wednesday ahead of more talks between Botman and Milan, who are eager to sign the centre-back from LOSC Lille.

The UEFA Champions League titans were heavily interested in the Ligue 1 star as well as Newcastle, however, the Telegraph reported that Lille wanted a staggering £46m for the 22-year-old Netherlands centre-back.

With the report starting that Milan will hold talks with Botman’s agent later today, it appears that personal terms could be agreed between the two parties, much to the dismay of Newcastle.

The Magpies were keen on Botman for the majority of the January window before Newcastle gave up on a move and instead opted to sign Dan Burn from Premier League rivals Brighton and Hove Albion.

Indeed, Newcastle’s interest in Botman was major during the winter, however, Milan now look to have taken the lead once again on the former Ajax academy star, with the player’s agent in northern Italy to discuss a potential summer move.

Newcastle should move on from Botman with Milan storming ahead

Newcastle’s pursuit of Botman was always an ambitious one, yet with Milan now seemingly storming ahead in the race for the defender, now could be the ideal time for the Toon to pull out of the competition and start eyeing more realistic targets

Whilst Botman would have been an incredible signing, it was always going to be a hard one for Newcastle given their status in the Premier League, with Milan offering so much more than what Eddie Howe’s side could ever do.