Eddie Howe has admitted to wanting to sign Dominik Szoboszlai before the midfielder agreed to join Liverpool.
Newcastle United and Liverpool are preparing for a fierce clash at St. James’ Park in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.
And had the summer transfer window played out slightly differently, one player set to line up against the Magpies could have been playing in black and white.
Szoboszlai, 22, was the subject of interest from both Newcastle and Liverpool, but the Hungarian, after deciding to leave RB Leipzig, ended up agreeing to join the Reds in a deal worth £61 million.
And speaking about his side’s failed pursuit, Howe, who spoke to reporters on Friday, said: “Sure we liked him. He’s had a really good start to his career – captain of his country at a really young age, I think that tells you about his mentality. Very good technical player. It was quite an expensive purchase for us. There’s lots that goes into every transfer but he’s certainly one that we liked.”
Nevertheless, despite how disappointing it was at the time to miss out on Szoboszlai, after signing Sandro Tonali from AC Milan instead, fans have well and truly moved on.