Newcastle United’s pursuit of Sven Botman has hit another brick wall as Lille president Olivier Letang has declared the defender is not for sale.
The Dutch U21 international - who guided Les Dogues to a shock Ligue 1 title last season - had emerged as the Magpies’ number one priority at centre-back.
Defensive reinforcements are needed at St James’ Park to shore up a leaky backline that has already conceded 42 goals this season.
Kieran Trippier’s arrival from Atletico Madrid was a positive start but the heart of defence also requires investment, with Jamaal Lascelles, Fabian Schar, Ciaran Clark and Federico Fernandez the same centre-back options that Rafa Benitez had on Tyneside.
The Telegraph reported yesterday that Lille had slapped a €55million price tag on their star asset to keep Newcastle at bay.
However, their club president has now refuted those claims and says Botman will be staying put.
“We were already asked for Sven last summer, but we were clear - we need him for this season,” Letang told MilanNews.
“We are making a move also in the Champions League, where we qualified for the second round as top of the group.
“There are some important goals for this second part of the year, so Botman will stay with us to pursue them until the end of the season.”
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