Newcastle United's pursuit of Hugo Ekitike was one of the transfer sagas of 2022 never mind the recent summer transfer window. The young French forward turned down a move to St. James' Park despite the club agreeing a deal with Reims on two occasions.
The Magpies were reportedly told to provide the 20-year-old with assurances over his playing time, despite just one full season in Ligue 1. Even then, the 2021-22 campaign was one disrupted by injury, but Ekitike returned an impressive return of 11 goals in 26 appearances - enough to make PSG sit up and take note.
The youngster originally signed a loan deal with the French champions with an option-to-buy for a reported fee of €35 million. “I’m not setting aside everything Newcastle did for me,” Ekitike told Le10 Sport after signing for PSG. “If I had to go abroad, I would have gone there. But when PSG wants you and you’re French, you can’t refuse.”
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However, the young striker has managed just 66 minutes so far this season and is yet to start a game for Christophe Galtier's side. That can hardly come as a surprise with Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi and Neymar in blistering form at the start of the campaign.
Nonetheless, that should still come with a warning for European talent looking take the next step in their career. Reports in France suggest that Ekitike is unhappy with his lack of game time, with Galtier addressing that talk on August 30.
He told French media: "It’s a good sign that Hugo has ants in his legs, itching, the technician first rebounded. He shows no signs of annoyance. We believe in him, in his potential. He will have playing time with the sequence of matches “
There's also a chance that Ekitike could return to Reims next summer with PSG refusing to take up the option, leaving the door open for Newcastle to reignite their interest. However, there's plenty of things that must fall into play before that happens.
The Magpies signed Alexander Isak prior to deadline day flexing their financial muscles and the Swedish international has already made a bright start scoring on his Newcastle debut at Anfield. The 22-year-old, who is also dubbed as a star of the future has played 154 minutes in two games, a stark contrast to that of Ekitike at PSG.
It's unclear whether Eddie Howe's side would re-enter negotiations if that did become a possibility, but continual links with Joao Pedro would suggest the Toon aren't done investing into their forward department. A right-winger is expected to be on their wish-list in January, if not next summer, following on from interest in Jack Harrison, Christian Pulisic, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Moussa Diaby.
Of course, Isak is slightly ahead of Ekitike in terms of senior games played and experience. But, as things stand, St. James' Park is able to boast a clear pathway into the first-team set-up, but one that requires hard work in order to get there.
Eddie Howe has spoken at length about bringing in the right characters and Newcastle should now be considered as a serious destination for upcoming talent across the globe, work behind the scenes on infrastructure will only heighten that appeal.
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