£3.5m bid rejected – why Newcastle must blow rivals out of the water for West Ham ace

COMMENT by Will Butcher

Newcastle must go all out to beat bitter rivals Middlesbrough in an attempt to sign West Ham goalkeeper Darren Randolph this summer.

West Ham are likely to be willing to allow the Ireland international to leave the London Stadium after they completed the season-long loan signing of Manchester City stopper Joe Hart on Tuesday afternoon.

Bleacher report transfer expert Dean Jones revealed on his personal Twitter account that Garry Monk's Boro have had a £3.5million bid rejected for Randolph, and that could see the Toon steal in.

Newcastle have made two signings this summer in defender Florian Lejeune from La Liga outfit Eibar, as well as a permanent deal for Christian Atsu but are expected to increase that number in the near future.

Football Insider believes the Toon should continue their summer spending spree by bringing Randolph to the north east as they look to avoid an instant return to the Championship come May 2018.

Here are three reasons why, including a transfer merry-go-round that could work in Newcastle's favour:

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Current options

Newcastle currently have an abundance of goalkeepers but all have their weaknesses. Karl Darlow was Rafa Benitez's first choice last season, but he made a number of high-profile errors that would not go unpunished in the Premier League.

Tim Krul and Rob Elliot are just returning from long-term knee injuries and it remains to be seen if they have lost a chunk of their quality, while Freddie Woodman is still too inexperienced.

Bringing Randolph to St. James' Park would see him instantly installed as the Toon's number one, with no injury problems and plenty of Premier League experience making his £3.5million price tag a bargain.

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Future of Darlow - deal could be struck?

The Sun claims Middlesbrough have also had a bid of £5million rejected for Darlow, as Monk searches for a new goalkeeper.

Boro would be in a better position to strike a deal with the Toon and bring Darlow to the Riverside Stadium if they allow Newcastle to move for Randolph.

With Randolph moving to Newcastle, that would open the door for Darlow to leave and Benitez's side may be more willing to consider Boro's offer – and they'd make a £1.5million profit overall.

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International teammates

With his proven Premier League quality and commanding aura from within the goalmouth, Randolph would hit the ground running.

He would also be playing with a number of his international teammates, namely Irish stars Daryl Murphy, Ciaran Clark and fellow goalkeeper Elliot.

Having teammates that he already knows well will allow him to ease into his place at Newcastle and build a rapport, strengthening his morale which in turn would help him display his best form.

In other Newcastle transfer news, Benitez is also plotting a move for a fellow countryman from the Premier League.

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