Newcastle United are bound to complete the signing of central defender Sven Botman from Lille, reports Fabrizio Romano. The Dutchman has been the Magpies’ primary defensive target since their takeover last year and had three bids turned down by the Ligue 1 side in January, following which they turned their attention toward other targets.
In the time elapsed, Italian giants AC Milan showed strong interest in signing the 22-year-old but were gazumped at the eleventh hour by the newly-rich Premier League outfit.
Newcastle will pay Lille 37 million euros – plus add-ons – to complete the transaction. As per reports, an agreement over personal terms is not likely to be an issue, and the player will undergo a medical examination next week to finalize the deal.
Botman will sign a long-term contract with the Magpies and become their third new incoming of the summer transfer window after Matt Targett and Nick Pope.
In an older interview with The Athletic, Botman claimed to have always dreamt about playing in the Premier League.
“If I’m honest, the Premier League is one of the leagues I dreamed about, but also Serie A, La Liga, the Bundesliga. The Premier League is something special. It’s the football I really like and that fits me. The style of play, the emotion; I really like to see the fans with such big emotions in the stands. It is a beautiful competition I really like to watch, and did for pretty much all my life,”
he said.
22-year-old Botman came through the AFC Ajax academy but left the club for Lille without making an appearance for the senior team. He joined Les Dogues in 2020, made 47 appearances across all competitions, and helped his side defeat Paris Saint-Germain for the domestic French title. The season after, the Dutchman added 32 more appearances to his bank while attracting interest from several of the top European clubs.
