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With reported record bid ready, Newcastle must forget 27-year-old and re-sign fan favourite
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Every summer and every January, Newcastle United fans wait to see if this is the transfer window which will see them smash their long standing transfer record, and every window they are disappointed.
The Magpies have not broken their top fee since signing Michael Owen for £16million from Real Madrid over a decade ago in 2005, a deal which itself broke a record spend which had stood for nine years following the arrival of Alan Shearer.
With Mike Ashley at the helm there is little optimism that will change soon, but that will not stop reports trying to give the Toon Army some hope of the Magpies smashing their 12-year record.
It is no different just two months after the end of the January window, with the Sun claiming that Newcastle are ready to splash out £20million on the signing of 27-year-old Burnley winger Johann Berg Gudmundsson in the summer, although face a battle with Leicester City and Southampton.
The Icelandic international said to be a firm favourite of Rafael Benitez after helping the Clarets stun the top flight this season with their impressive performance which sees them sit in seventh, just five points off Arsenal and the ‘big six’.
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However, Gudmundsson is not the sort of signing to get the Toon Army excited, even with the reported record price tag, and if Benitez truly does have £20million at his disposal, then a move for on-loan winger Kenedy seems a much more appealing move for all parties involved.
The 22-year-old has established himself as a firm favourite on Tyneside since arriving on a temporary deal from Chelsea in January, and after his handful of bright appearances has already got supporters urging the Magpies to snap him up again.
Whether £20million would be enough to convince the Blues to part with the Brazilian is another matter, but considering he arrived for around £6.3million in 2015, it is enough of a profit to get them thinking.
The Newcastle faithful would love to see him re-signed in summer, preferably in a permanent deal, and would be worthy of the Magpies smashing their record fee.
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