Aleksandar Mitrovic Deal Close - But Newcastle Sweating On Getting It Done

Newcastle United's deal for Aleksandar Mitrovic is not done yet - with Porto attempting to hijack the transfer at the last minute, although they are unlikely to be able to match the Magpies' offer. Mitrovic himself is believed to prefer a move to Portugal rather than Tyneside due to the fact he can enjoy European football there, but it is likely that he will be left with no other option than Newcastle if he does decide to leave Anderlecht this summer - so the Magpies remain confident a deal can be done. Belgian media have reported that the Magpies hierarchy have agreed a fee in the region of £13 million for Mitrovic with Anderlecht and, despite his agent having flown to Newcastle on Friday to conclude the deal, the 20-year-old Serbian international attended Anderlecht training on Saturday morning. It is unlikely he will join Newcastle before they fly out to the USA on Sunday, with £14.5 million signing Georginio Wijnaldum expected to be on the plane though.

Interestingly, on Friday Mitrovic's agent Pini Zahavi was quoted in sudinfo.be as saying:

"The formalisation of the transfer will be made in the coming hours. "Mitrovic and will sign a contract for five seasons for the former club of Philippe Albert."

However, no deal has yet been finalised with the player - and Mitrovic's father, Ivica, has cast a slight doubt by saying:

"Yes Newcastle is an option but we are still waiting for another club (believed to be Porto)."

Magpies supporters are in disbelief due to the fact they were the only Premier League club yet to make a signing this summer - but they are keeping their fingers crossed that a second huge deal could be completed imminently. Swansea City, Tottenham Hotspur, Roma, Benfica and Chelsea have also been credited with an interest in Mitrovic, although it appears as if Newcastle have won the race for the striker€™s signature. New Newcastle boss Steve McClaren is looking to recruit at least two strikers this summer and Mitrovic has been high on the shopping list, alongside Queens Park Rangers forward Charlie Austin. Mitrovic has netted 44 goals in 90 matches for Anderlecht, and has a career total of 69 strikes from 158 games. A powerful and relatively-quick forward, Mitrovic has an eye for goal and he grabbed headlines when he scored Anderlecht€™s equaliser at the Emirates Stadium last November when the Belgian side came from three goals down to draw 3-3 against Arsenal in a Champions League group-stage match. Anderlecht paid Partizan Belgrade a club-record £4 million for the 11-cap Serbia international, who started his career at Teleoptik, back in August 2013 and he has gone on to become one of Europe€™s most sought-after forwards. In 2014-15 Mitrovic bagged 28 goals in 51 matches, including 20 in 37 Belgian Pro League appearances and three in the Champions League. For all the latest NUFC News, Views and Transfers make sure to follow whatculture.com/NUFC on Twitter and Facebook.