Newcastle Transfer News: Vurnon Anita To Have Medical After Agreeing Terms

By Matt Holmes / August 15, 2012

Newcastle United have agreed personal terms with Vurnon Anita as the versatile Ajax player arrived from Amsterdam today to put the finishing touches on his move to the Premier League. NUFC.com reports that only a medical and other formalities of the move are to be concluded before the deal for the Dutch international is finalised. At this point, it is looking like the 23-year-old will be a Newcastle United player before the end of the week and could yet be available for selection for Saturday's Premier League opener against Tottenham Hotspur at St. James' Park. Magpies fans will be relieved that their club have finally made a breakthrough in the transfer market this summer for one of their big targets. After missing out on bringing in Luuk De Jong (who moved from Twente to Borussia Mochengladbach) and Andy Carroll (who could yet make a move before the end of the month) to their forward line and deals stalling for Lille right-back Mathieu Debuchy and Twente defender Douglas, finally the club have a deal done for Anita. Anita started his career at left-back under Martin Jol but under current boss Frank De Boer has also proved useful as a defensive midfielder and his commanding presence has helped the Amsterdam outfit win back-to-back Eredivisie titles. As United are looking for new recruits in both positions, the Dutchman looks to fit the bill. The Magpies are weak in numbers for central midfield slots with the departure of Danny Guthrie and have been looking for a left-footed full-back ever since Jose Enrique was sold to Liverpool last summer. A holding midfield role is believed to be his preferred position and indeed he kicked off the Dutch league for Ajax playing in that position in a 2-2 draw against Alkmaar on Sunday. With Cheick Tiote a doubt for Saturday's game, Anita could well find himself in that position.