Newcastle United launch Celtic transfer mission as Hoops ace with £20m valuation turns Eddie Howe target

Newcastle United have put a Celtic player on their transfer agenda after scouting the Hoops this season.

Eddie Howe remains a big what if story in modern times at Parkhead. The current Toon head coach was in talks to take over as Celtic manager in 2021 but ultimately talks collapsed and Ange Postecoglou arrived, winning five out of six available trophies.

It would appear as if Howe has continued to monitor Celtic since, as according to the Chronicle, Nicolas Kuhn has been placed on the Newcastle transfer list. It is claimed the Premier League side “are believed to have run the rule over Celtic right wing star Nicolas-Gerrit Kuhn.”

The report does place a caveat with the fact that “while he is not Newcastle's first choice for a new winger, the left-footer is somebody who is grabbing the attention north of the border.” It goes on to add “Newcastle are trying to beef up their scouting network in Scotland but have sent senior scouts to Parkhead this term with Kuhn the stand out performer.”

A £20m valuation currently hovers over Kuhn as per the report. Currently, Kuhn, Daizen Maeda, Yang, Luis Palma and James Forrest are all winger options for boss Brendan Rodgers. That area of the pitch is also being targeted in the transfer market, with Aston Villa’s Louie Barry one name said to be on the radar.

Speaking earlier this season on Kuhn, Rodgers said: “Nicolas is a player who’s improving, and he has still got more improvement for me. That needs to come from where he was at when he first came in to now. He’s been a consistent performer, so I’m really pleased about that."