Botman was chased by Newcastle in the January transfer window, but Lille were set against losing him mid-season, and the Magpies have returned to the pursuit this summer.
This time the Magpies are given strong competition by Italian giants AC Milan, who have had a personal term agreement with Botman for several months.
AC Milan now have an agreement in place with Lille’s owners too, at a price of €30m, but president Letang is a barrier to the deal being completed.
Letang wants to sell Botman to Newcastle as the Premier League side are putting more money on the table.
The defender himself is claimed to prefer a switch to AC Milan, but Newcastle believe they can take him to St James’ Park.
The Rossoneri could look to Lille’s owners to talk to Letang and help smooth Botman’s switch to Italy.
But it remains to be seen who will win the tug of war for the centre-back’s signature this summer, with Botman keen to resolve his future by next week.
