Bournemouth reporter offers update after claims NUFC could swap Matt Ritchie for Joshua King
Bournemouth reporter Ned Payne has denied claims that Newcastle are set to swap Matt Ritchie for Joshua King, describing the rumours as 'wide of the mark'.
This comes after the Sun's Alan Nixon claimed over the weekend that Newcastle were in talks with Bournemouth over a potential part-exchange involving NUFC winger Matt Ritchie and Cherries striker Josh King.
https://twitter.com/nedpayne_echo/status/1011248047110676480
This comes as no surprise in many ways. Yes we do need a striker and King is someone Benitez is believed to be a fan of, but it never seemed likely.
For one, part-exchange deals are so uncommon and rarely work that way and it also seemed so unlikely that Benitez would sell Matt Ritchie - a player who's been an integral part of Rafa's plans for two seasons now.
With this coming from the Sun's Alan Nixon on Sunday, I doubt too many thought it carried any truth, however it's good to have this bizarre rumour cleared up from both the Bournemouth and Newcastle end (see update from the Chronicle's Chris Waugh below).
