German club Hoffenheim have confirmed striker Joelinton is in “concrete negotiations” with a Premier League club amid speculation that he is about to become Newcastle’s first summer signing.
The 22-year-old Brazilian was not involved in the Bundesliga outfit’s pre-season friendly against Regensburg on Wednesday afternoon, and they confirmed his absence was due to talks over a move.
In response to a question about the player’s whereabouts, the club wrote a post on its official Twitter account saying: “Joe is not there, he is in concrete negotiations with a Premier League club. It may be that he leaves us.”
The news came as the Magpies attempted to make up for lost time with only three weeks of the summer transfer window remaining and hours after they had announced Steve Bruce’s appointment as head coach.
PA understands Joelinton is a player the club has been monitoring for some time, and his reported price-tag of around £36million would dwarf the club record £21million they paid for Miguel Almiron in January.
