Newcastle United are reportedly now in ‘advanced talks’ to hire Ramon Planes as their new Director of Football (DoF).
The Lowdown: No Emenalo?
The Athletic reported last week that Michael Emenalo was thought to be the ‘leading candidate’ to take on the new DoF role at St James’ Park, but the progress to hire for the position has ‘slowed’ and may potentially be delayed until after the January transfer window.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) consortium was understood to have received a plan from Emenalo for January and beyond, and he is reportedly ‘ready and available to start immediately’.
However, given the delays, other candidates could well come into the equation for the role from now until next month.
The Latest: Planes talks
As per Ser Deportivos Valencia (via Super Deporte), former Barcelona technical secretary Planes is now in ‘advanced talks’ with both Newcastle and Paris Saint-Germain over potentially taking over as DoF, amid interest from Valencia, AS Roma and Bayer Leverkusen as well.
Planes’ ‘intention’ is for his next job to move abroad, meaning that St James’ Park is a possible destination for him.
The new owners on Tyneside are reportedly looking for a person with ‘experience and knowledge of the market’, and the 54-year-old seems to fit the bill.
The Verdict: Good fit
With the experience that Planes has gained at one of the top clubs in world football, he would certainly be a good fit for the consortium’s long-term project.
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Claimed as having done an ‘incredible job’ at Barcelona by Italian football journalist and transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, after discovering ‘top signings’ in both Pedri and Ronald Araujo, Planes would be very useful for the upcoming winter window, when Newcastle really need to get their recruitment spot-on if they are to avoid relegation to the Championship.
He is ready and available, so the Magpies need to pounce before another club takes him first.
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