Newcastle have put in a fresh bid with Lille and have an agreement in place with the French club to sign the Dutchman.
They have also offered more money than the Serie A giants to the player, but Botman would prefer to join AC Milan over Newcastle this summer.
The Rossoneri have made progress in the swoop, but are finding rivalling Newcastle to be a tough ask.
Newcastle now have the edge in the race, but according to Italian outlet Calciomercato.com, AC Milan are far away from giving up on the prospect of signing the centre-back.
They conducted more talks with Lille and the defender’s representatives over a transfer to the San Siro.
Botman is AC Milan’s number one choice and they have continued to push for a signing this summer.
The Serie A giants have been in direct contact with Lille’s owners as current chairman Olivier Letang would prefer to sell him to Newcastle.
Lille want around €40m before agreeing to sell the defender in the ongoing transfer window.
