Newcastle reach full agreement to sign Amar Dedić - Breaking news on Saturday

Some great news to share on Saturday afternoon, just hours before today's pre-season clash with Bayer Leverkusen.

It's a done deal for Amar Dedic, as Newcastle United have reached an agreement with Benfica to sign the Bosnian right-back.

After a week of progress, talks, bids, personal terms and everything in between, the deal appears to be done, as Fabrizio Romano reports. 

'Dedic deal done 

Newcastle United have struck a €35m (£30m) deal, including a sell-on clause, to land Benfica's Amar Dedic.

Fabrizio Romano reports that Benfica wanted to keep the full-back, but the 23-year-old pushed for the move and was eager to be reuinted with Matthias Jaissle, who managed the 23-year-old at RB Salzburg.

It’s been two months since the club knew it needed at least one full-back, and well over a month since Tino got injured while away with England. But, the new manager has his new right back. 

The deal, as we’ve said before, makes a lot of sense given their previous working relationship. With Liverpool just a week away, Dedic should be able to slot straight into the team, with Tino unlikely to make next Sunday's opener.

We’ve known since Saturday morning that the deal was almost done, so confirmation right before the big weekender of games is a big plus.

A much-needed breakthrough 

Ross Wilson still has his work cut out over the final few weeks of the summer, but this is the first of many breakthroughs we needed.

Dedic's arrival feels much-needed, handing us a full-back with high-level experience, pace, athleticism and the ability to play at right-back and left-back.

Next up, hopefully a new midfielder, a creative spark to fill the gap left by Bruno and potentially a new right winger, with Jacob Murphy's future in doubt.