Newcastle in talks to sign Amar Dedić - Benfica star keen after Jaissle approval

At this point, we’ve complained about the lack of full-back links for so long it was about time we got one. Now, finally, reporters are starting to link them.

The word comes from Fabrizio Romano, following a report from Sam (@samc_reports), and it's a good one. 

The Italian claims that Newcastle are now in club-to-club talks with Benfica for 23-year-old right-back Amar Dedić.

Romano says negotiations kicked off today, that Dedić is keen on the move to Tyneside, and, crucially, that he's been approved as a target by Matthias Jaissle himself. Romano's added his little "deal on" line too, which is usually a decent sign we're not just kicking tyres here.

Jaissle reunion on the cards? 

A new manager likes to bring in players they know, so we always suspected one of Jaissle's former players would join up. 

Under Jaissle at RB Salzburg, he racked up 52 appearances and chipped in with a direct hand in 10 goals from full-back, which is a tidy return for a defender. The German often used Dedic as an inverted left-back rather than sticking him out wide on the right. 

That would fit with the rumours that the club wants to sign one full-back to cover both flanks, especially when many would argue Tino is a better left-back than he is a right-back. 

No rumours about the fee, though Benfica were quoted as wanting £40-£50m in January when Man City were interested in him, with Benfica pointing to his contract length and rapid development. However, no formal offer was ever put forward, so no fee was ever confirmed. 

Newcastle were actually linked to Dedic in 2023, when Chelsea were another club monitoring him. He went to Benfica for around €12m, so very much one that got away for Newcastle.

A good move for Newcastle

Amar Dedić might not be a name many fans are that aware of, but he’s a good pickup, despite the Portuguese league often being a hard one to judge. 

He’s a pacy full-back who can get forward, carry the ball, and put in a cross. When compared to Tino Livramento, the pair are fairly similar. Dedić is more the carry-the-ball type, whereas Tino is more likely to pass the ball forward.

For now, it’s just a link, but the “deal on” chat, alongside a club-to-club contact, means it’s likely fairly close. This is, of course, provided the link is real, and isn’t agent talk.