Odds slashed: Newcastle installed runaway favourites to sign £25m-valued player
By Harry Sykes
The odds have been slashed on Newcastle United signing Everton midfielder James McCarthy this summer, according to bookmakers.
Sky Bet priced the north-east giants at 5/4 on Thursday night to land McCarthy, 26, before the transfer window shuts at the end of next month.
Newcastle are the runaway favourites to secure the signature of the Republic of Ireland international, with Leicester (6/1) and West Brom (12/1) relatively distantly priced.
Sky Bet have dropped the price on Newcastle signing McCarthy since last week, when the odds were set at 7/2.
The drop in price comes after reports that the Magpies are set to table a bid for the Everton player, who is said by Bleacher Report correspondent Dean Jones to be valued at £25million.
The high price comes even though McCarthy was only a fringe player at Everton in 2016-17, when he suffered a series of niggling injuries that prompted criticism from manager Ronald Koeman.
Nevertheless, Newcastle boss Rafael Benitez is widely reported to be a big admirer of the player he has been strongly linked with in the last two windows.
McCarthy, who joined Everton for £13million from Wigan in 2013, is under contract until 2020.
In other Newcastle United transfer news, the club have agreed the terms of a defender transfer as their whirlwind of activity continues.
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