£30m deal now "very close" - Confirmed in Friday morning press conference

Eddie Howe has revealed that Lewis Hall is moving "closer" to joining Newcastle United on a permanent deal.

The 19-year-old has managed just 12 minutes of Premier League football since the turn of the year and has started only four games in all competitions since sealing a loan move from Chelsea last summer.

Howe insists a permanent deal 'gets closer with every game." This appears to back up suggestions that a £30m move will be triggered if we avoid relegation, as the terms of the transfer don't appear to center around his minutes on the pitch.

Speaking about Hall's future and lack of game time during this morning's press conference, Howe had this to say:

“He's getting closer (to signing permanently) with every game. I'm not on top of that on a daily basis, but I'm sure it's very close.

 “He is near the first team. I think the broader look is that every transfer we make is so important. We don’t have an endless amount of money to spend and financial fair play will restrict us not just now but in the future.

“So every decision we make we have to try and get right. And you are never going to do that in the transfer market. There will always be mistakes. So I am not really speaking about Lewis here, I am speaking generally about every transfer we bring in.”