Steve Nickson in contact over £25m Brazilian and two transfer misses made public

After the last few seasons, it’s fair to say that Newcastle United fans would take all the Brazilians that we can get our hands on.

Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton have earned legendary status here on Tyneside, particularly the former owing to his status as our Carabao Cup- winning captain.

The South American market is proving to be a true hotbed for blossoming talent and world-class prospects. Yonly have to look as far as Julian Alvarez, Vinicius Jr, Rodrygo and Estevao to see that, and it’s a growing list of players that looks to be showing no signs of stopping anytime soon.

And we’d be wise to avoid missing out, as recent reports have reignited the news that we have one rising Brazilian star on our radar, having previously been tenuously linked a few weeks ago…

Another Brazilian eyed up?

According to Mark Douglas at The iPaper, Newcastle's head of recruitment Steve Nickson has 'enquired' about a deal for Vasco da Gama's 19-year-old sensation Rayan Vitor.

It was reported in October that a move for the exciting forward had already received support from Chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan, who is thought to be eager to see the young Brazilian arrive.

A month on, Douglas reveals that the pursuit is currently being headed by Nickson, who is said to be slowly building up a network in Brazil, with the goal to beat the likes of Real Madrid and Chelsea to signing the next generation of talent emerging from the country.

With 12 goals for Vasco da Gama this season, Rayan certainly won’t be cheap, and the Rio-based club are thought to value him at £25m.

This would be marginally cheaper than what Chelsea paid Palmeiras for Estevao, who has shone since arriving in the Premier League and worked his way into Carlo Ancelotti's national side.

Two South Americans previously targeted

Pursuing Rayan hasn’t been our sole endeavour in South America as of late, as Douglas reveals that we’ve been involved in some close negotiations for two young stars who both made moves elsewhere over the summer.

First there was Palmeiras defender Vitor Reis, who was said to be very enthusiastic about the prospect of signing for us, but PSR and financial concerns are said to have scuppered that deal, which allowed Manchester City to subsequently swoop in.

Then there was Franco Mastantuono, who is making a positive impression at the Bernabeu for Real Madrid this season. We engaged with River Plate over possibly signing him last year, but like Reis, we didn’t have the suitable finances to justify a transfer for the Argentine at the time.

After some PSR-friendly outgoings over the summer, which included Alexander Isak, Sean Longstaff and Lloyd Kelly, let's hope there is a pot of cash to push forward Nickson’s South American project.

Franco Mastantuono