The Magpies are in the market for a new midfielder this summer as manager Eddie Howe plans to free Bruno Guimaraes in order to allow him to play further up the pitch.
Barella was floated as an option with the club making a bid to sign him.
The deal though did not progress, with Newcastle now moving to sign Sandro Tonali from AC Milan, but a claim has been made about why the Barella swoop ended.
According to Sky Italia via FcInterNews, it was Barella himself that ended any talk of a transfer, refusing to discuss the possibility of a move.
He made clear to Inter that he had no intention of leaving the club to sign for Newcastle, leading the Magpies to conclude it would not be right to try to change his mind.
Now Newcastle are quickly bidding to turn the page on Barella by signing Tonali from AC Milan in what would be a stunning coup.
The reported £60m fee would be the joint record fee the club would have spent on a single player.
And Tonali would bank a huge salary increase at St James’ Park.
