Newcastle backed to seal ‘great’ signing from Celtic after £10m reveal – ex-manager
Exit-bound Celtic midfielder Olivier Ntcham could be a “great” signing for Newcastle United, according to Alex McLeish.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, the former Scotland boss insisted the 25-year-old would be a low-risk capture on a free.
As revealed by Football Insider, Newcastle are set to reignite their interest in Ntcham after Celtic chose to terminate his contract.
It is understood Steve Bruce has been told he will have a transfer budget of between just £8-10million this summer.
As such, McLeish insisted Ntcham could prove to be a savvy capture for Bruce.
“If he’s a free transfer then it’s not as if you’re taking a massive gamble,” McLeish told Football Insider’s Russell Edge.
“Obviously you still have to deal with players’ wages which are pretty massive these days, says big, jealous Alex.
“Yes, a good signing on a free transfer. He knows the game and he knows the midfield position.
“He could be a great squad player for a Premier League club, I would have thought. Especially seeing as he was linked with and went to Marseille.”
Ntcham fell out of favour at Celtic Park and was shipped on loan to Marseille in January.
However, he made just six appearances and the Ligue 1 outfit chose not to trigger the £4.5million optional purchase clause.
Ntcham played a total of 147 times for Celtic, with 24 goals and 13 assists to his name.
In other news, Bruce is plotting a “bargain” signing from Leeds with his meagre Newcastle United kitty.