Newcastle United remain ‘in the race’ to sign Borussia Monchengladbach forward Marcus Thuram - but face major competition from Serie A giants Inter Milan after they made a firm offer for the Frenchman.

The 25-year-old is heading into the final six months of his current deal with the Bundesliga outfit and is yet to come to an agreement over extending his three-year stay with the club. That has led to speculation Thuram could be allowed to depart in a cut-price deal during the January transfer window as Borussia look to avoid losing one of their prize assets on a free transfer next summer.

Newcastle, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal are on an extensive list of clubs said to have held talks with Thuram’s representatives - with the Magpies encouraged to sign the forward by Allan Saint-Maximin, who admitted he had spoken to him about a move to Tyneside, saying: “He is a great player and I hope we have a chance to take him here. Yeah, I will be honest, I have chatted with him.”

United manager Eddie Howe responded to those comments last week as he spoke to the media ahead of the Boxing Day win at Leicester City. He said: "Well done, Maxi! He (Thuram) is a top player. But yeah, no more than that. He’s one that I watched in the World Cup for sure but no more than that.”

Thuram’s contract situation in Germany has attracted plenty of attention from across Europe, with Everton, Arsenal, Aston Villa, Newcastle, Tottenham and Bayern Munich all considering a move for the Frenchman.

90Min have now reported it is Inter that have made the first firm move to land Thuram after offering the former Guingamp star a deal said to be worth around £4.4m-a-season if he joins them on a free transfer when his current deal comes to an end in June. However, the report also states Newcastle are ‘ready to try and tempt’ Thuram to join them during the January transfer window and believe the forward would be ‘a good fit’ in Howe’s squad.

Inter Milan make £4.4m ‘first move’ for Newcastle United and Man Utd transfer target