Celtic face a battle to retain one of their star performers

Newcastle United are believed to be lining up a bold summer offer for in-demand Celtic winger Nicolas Kuhn.

The Magpies are in the market to bolster their right-sided attacking options after the January sale of Miguel Almiron to MLS side Atlanta United, with Jacob Murphy currently being the club’s only right winger option.

Football Insider understands the St James’ Park outfit have turned their attention towards Hoops star Kuhn as a potential alternative to other linked players such as Brentford’s Bryan Mbeumo and Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo, in what is expected to be a busy summer of transfer activity in the North East after a subdued period of spending over the last 18 months.

Kuhn arrived at Celtic 18 months ago from Rapid Vienna for a fee of just £3m, but is now thought to be worth nearly eight times that amount heading into the summer after a series of stellar displays both domestically and in European competitions.

Newcastle United ‘have the funds’ to sign Nicolas Kuhn

Former Tottenham Hotspur and Leeds United goalkeeper Paul Robinson has claimed that Newcastle are in a great position to sign Kuhn and has claimed they have the finances to get a deal over the line this summer.

However, he expressed doubts about Kuhn’s calibre and whether the 25-year-old would actually have enough quality to improve Newcastle’s existing starting line-up. The Magpies finished seventh last season and are currently on the hunt for Champions League qualification with Alexander Isak leading the line alongside Anthony Gordon and Jacob Murphy with Harvey Barnes and Callum Wilson also providing cover from the bench.

Speaking with Football Insider, ex-England international Robinson commented: “Whether he can step up to the level of the Premier League is to be seen. You look at his record this season, 10 goals, six assists, they paid Rapid Vienna five million for him in January last year.

“So, he’s a player that’s, with no disrespect to Celtic, but if the Premier League go knocking, then they’ve got the funds to be able to do it.

“They could do it at 25 [million], he’s a player who’s ready. Put him in the Newcastle squad now, does he play every week? I’m not sure he does.

“The thing for Newcastle is we know how FFP and PSR that we wamp on about every week and how tight that they are.

“You buy players that improve, the starting 11. He’s a good player, but I don’t think he gets in that start at 11 now, in all honesty.”

What could Nicolas Kuhn offer Newcastle United?

Celtic face a battle to retain Nicolas Kuhn in the summer window after losing Kyogo Furuhashi to Rennes, Matt O’Riley to Brighton and the now returned Jota to Al-Ittihad in recent transfer windows.

However, they have proven in recent windows that they are excellent at driving a hard bargain and will only part ways with their best players when they receive adequate funds.

Kuhn is one of the most sought after footballers in Scottish football after scoring 18 goals and assisting 12 across all competitions this term. He has already achieved a great deal in a Celtic shirt and after achieving a league and Scottish Cup double last season - now has high hopes of achieving a treble after winning the League Cup earlier in the campaign.

The 25-year-old is blessed with incredible pace, technical ability and a clinical nature to score goals in the final third of the pitch. TBR football understands that Kuhn is also the subject of interest from Leeds United, West Ham, Crystal Palace and Brentford as well as the Magpies and could even be worth upwards of £25m if a bidding war were to take place.