Lewis Hall's 'untouchable' Newcastle status set for biggest test yet from Man United - view
Newcastle United have reportedly made it clear that Lewis Hall is untouchable and not for sale at any price this summer.
The 21-year-old is of interest to Manchester United, who are keen for reinforcements in defence as Michael Carrick looks to build his squad.
And the Red Devils may well test the Magpies' stance, given the exits that have already played out at St James' Park this summer.
Bruno Guimaraes had been not for sale earlier this summer, too, but is now set to complete a £75million deal to join Arsenal.
Yet Newcastle will stand by their word and are not under any immediate pressure, with Hall under contract for another three years.
New manager Matthias Jaissle will likely have already made his point to the young defender, who will be key to any project the German envisions.
Newcastle United draw line under summer
Despite finishing last season so poorly, confirming a 12th-place finish in the Premier League and no European football, Newcastle never could have imagined where they would end up.
Just two months later, the Magpies have been gutted from top to bottom and now face a new era under a new manager.
But now is the time to draw a line under a painful summer and look forward. Jaissle arrives highly rated from his previous jobs, and will be determined to prove himself in the Premier League.
To do that, he will need his current Newcastle squad to stay together. Hall is a part of that, and The i Paper report that the 21-year-old is seen as "untouchable".
Yet it remains to be seen whether decision-makers can stick to that verdict this time, with their form this summer sewing doubt.
Newcastle explain Bruno Guimaraes exit
When news emerged that an agreement had finally been reached to sell Guimaraes, there were mixed reactions among the fanbase.
Some fans were glad to see the saga come to an end, with an unhappy player finally sold.
Others were left furious by the fee, and concluded that Newcastle had caved in on their original demands for the Brazilian.
"We didn’t want to sell Bruno. It wasn’t in the plan to sell Bruno,” sporting director Ross Wilson admitted this week.
"None of us wanted to sell Bruno. He’s our captain, he was very, very important to us and the debate over his price – it’s a world record fee for a player of his age.
"What we had to weigh up was, very respectfully from Bruno with his behaviour towards us, very emotionally as well, effectively told us he wanted to leave and move on.
"That doesn’t mean he can go but it certainly plays a part in what our thinking is when we hit a certain range of number. But there’s no part in saying it was part of our strategy and was in our thinking this summer – it wasn’t."