Newcastle "Greedily Eyeing" £15m International Defender, Report Claims

Newcastle United are "greedily eyeing" Monaco defender Aymen Abdennour - and will make a move for the Tunisian international once they have signed Florian Thauvin, a report claims. La Provence report that the Magpies are close to securing a £12 million move for Marseille's Thauvin - with Remy Cabella heading the other way on a season-long loan deal - and, once they have acquired the winger, they will turn their attention to Abdennour. Interestingly, last month Foot Mercato claimed that the Magpies had opened the expected bidding war for the centre-back by offering ‚17 million (£12 million) for the Tunisian international - although Monaco want north of £15 million.

The 25-year-old centre-back has been on Newcastle€™s radar for several seasons having impressed at Toulouse and then Monaco in Ligue 1 but there are a long list of suitors queuing up to entice him away from the Stade Louis II. Capped 33 times by Tunisia, Abdennour is regarded as one of the most-consistent defensive performers in France - although it is also believed he has already made it to clear to Newcastle that he is not interested in moving to the North East. Having helped Monaco to third place in the table and to the quarter-finals of the Champions League, Abdennour€™s agent revealed a couple of weeks ago that the defender could look to move on should there be interest. The 6ft 2in centre-back started his career at ‰toile du Sahel in his native Tunisia, spending six months on loan at Werder Bremen in 2010, before moving to Toulouse in 2011. A transfer to Monaco then followed last summer after an impressive six-month loan spell. In all he has made 140 league appearances, scoring eight times. For all the latest NUFC News, Views and Transfers make sure to follow WhatCulture.com/NUFC on Twitter and Facebook.