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Newcastle United have suffered a big blow with midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg rejecting the idea of a move to St James’ Park.
The Magpies still have a number of holes left in their squad to fill and with the departures of Kieran Trippier and Bruno Guimaraes, have seen significant leaders depart.
Sandro Tonali’s exit has also removed a solid midfield option and Newcastle recently turned towards midfield general Hjobjerg.
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The 31-year-old Dane has substantial Premier League experience and was on the books at Tottenham Hotspur until the summer of 2024, regularly coming up against Newcastle over the years.
He is currently at French giants Marseille, but could move on amid the Ligue 1 side’s need to balance the books; they have missed out on Champions League football.
Hojbjerg though will not be joining Newcastle as he is not convinced about a move to St James’ Park, even though the Magpies were ready to meet Marseille’s asking price.
Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano wrote on X: “Pierre Emile Hojbjerg’s move to Newcastle currently OFF following new talks in the recent hours.
| League played in | |
|---|---|
| Regionalliga Bayern | Bundesliga |
| Premier League | Ligue 1 |
“#NUFC were prepared to pay what OM wanted but Hojbjerg has decided to turn down the proposal.”
Hojbjerg could well have another exit route from Marseille which he prefers and that route may take him to the San Siro.
AC Milan are interested in signing the Dane and, crucially, he has already given the green light to a move to Ruben Amorim’s team.
The Rossoneri though need to make space for Hjobjerg by offloading players, meaning the midfielder may be playing the waiting game before he can complete a switch to Italy.
Whether Newcastle will continue to work on convincing the midfielder or switch their attention to other targets now remains to be seen.
The Magpies though are surely working with a limited pool of midfield targets who can offer the leadership skills and Premier League experience that Hojbjerg can bring to the table.
For young manager Matthias Jaissle, who is new to the Premier League, asking him to head into the campaign with less leaders on the pitch than Eddie Howe had is a big call.
