Newcastle United have a rich history of dipping their toes into the French market and fishing for bargain deals over in Ligue 1. Of course, the French top-flight is famous for having excellent young talents and they were always good at developing them properly.

But now with the Magpies not exactly having the warchest they were hoping to get with the takeover, Steve Bruce will have to make do with a much smaller budget. Not to mention that the outside circumstances with the recent outbreak have definitely taken a toll on their wallets as well.

However, Newcastle are on a lookout for quality reinforcements for the upcoming Premier League campaign and one of the big targets that are on their radar is Lille's Boubakary Soumare.

But, if the recent update coming from the reliable Fabrizio Romano is to be believed, the French outfit has declined the Magpies' latest offer which was in the range of €35m with add-ons included (£32.4m).

The 21-year-old midfielder is extremely highly rated and it's becoming painfully obvious that he won't exactly be an easy target to attain for Bruce. With his overall quality and undeniable talent, Lille will undoubtedly be looking to get as much money for him as possible.

It remains to be seen whether Newcastle even have the financial power to meet their asking price, whatever it may be in the end.

At the moment, however, this certainly counts as a big setback for the Magpies on the market.

Verdict

Soumare is an incredible talent and despite his young age, he's already well developed. Even though he is a midfielder by trade, his skillset is simply incredible as he has both the power and the technicality to play in various different roles.

It goes without saying that Newcastle could certainly use such a player for the upcoming season in the English top-flight.