Victor Munoz deal moves closer as Real Madrid step aside - Fabrizio Romano

Newcastle United's move for Osasuna winger Victor Munoz appears to be moving forward with pace.

After weeks of being linked to the Spain international, reports started appearing on Thursday that talks were entering an advanced stage.

While claims on an official bid varied based on the source, one thing that appears consistent is that Munoz is keen on the move, which is a huge boost for the Magpies.

Personal terms aren't thought to be an issue, with reports suggesting that Munoz is happy with the terms on offer and impressed by our project, so all that remains is reaching an agreement with Osasuna.

Real Madrid open the door for Newcastle

Real Madrid are entitled to 50% of the sale due to their sell-on clause, but could also scupper the whole thing by triggering their option to buy Munoz back.

According to Fabrizio Romano, though, that's not going to happen. The Italian confirmed on X this morning that Real Madrid will not be activating their clause, handing a 'confident' Newcastle a clearer route to land the 22-year-old.

As stated below, Romano suggests Real's 50% clause will land them 'over €17m', suggesting Newcastle are looking to pay in the region of €35m. 

"Real Madrid will NOT activate the buy-back clause for Víctor Muñoz as Newcastle are confident to get deal done after bid sent yesterday. 

"Real will receive 50% of the deal, over €17m."

Munoz looks to be the next incoming deal

That's a big potential pitfall avoided for Newcastle, so now all that remains is to thrash out terms that Osasuna will be happy with.

Newcastle has the option to activate his release clause, which is €40 million (£34.5m), but the fact that talks are ongoing suggests that the proposal is currently below that, or is being structured in a way that requires a bit of negotiating.

Whatever the case, this one looks like it could be done in the coming days.

Victor Munoz will be part of the Spain side who get their World Cup campaign underway on Monday at 5pm when they take on Cape Verde, so we may get a look at him in action if he's selected.