Newcastle United transfer target Sven Botman looks set to complete a move of just €25m to Serie A league leaders AC Milan.
Botman was a Newcastle transfer target during the January window as the club seeked out defensive reinforcements to help them stave off the drop relegation from the Premier League.
Despite significant interest being reported, with Newcastle’s new wealth derived from their Saudi-backed takeover earlier in the season, they were unable to agree a deal with a stubborn Lille board who didn’t want to lose even more of their talented squad without a suitable replacement.
Newcastle subsequently went on to sign Dan Burn from Brighton, and The Magpies have rocketed themselves away from the relegation zone after a strong run six wins in seven games, with this run only to an end against Champions League holders Chelsea in a 1-0 defeat.
90min have reported Milan are close to striking a double deal with reigning Ligue 1 champions Lille which will see Botman and Renato Sanches sign for a combined fee of €40m, with Dutch defender Botman taking up the majority of this allocation (62.5%).
Botman has helped Lille keep a clean sheet in each of their last five league games, with the first leg defeat against Chelsea in the Champions League the only goals conceded during this run.