Newcastle eye teenage wonderkid after international debut as Guimaraes’ Brazil teammate responds to interest

Newcastle United have joined Crystal Palace and West Ham United in the pursuit of highly-rated Norwegian wonderkid Sindre Walle Egeli, according to reports from HITC Sport.

The 18-year-old striker, who recently joined Erling Haaland in the senior Norway squad, has been playing first team football for three years and rose to prominence in the fourth tier of Norwegian football when he smashed in an incredible 19 goals in his first 11 games - including an impressive five on his competitive debut.

Egeli boasts a combined record of 32 goals across 35 appearances from Norway’s U15 to U21 level and has been compared locally to Manchester City icon Haaland for his movement and all-round game.

However, Egeli, who now plays his football at Danish title contenders FC Nordsjaelland has also been praised for his similarities with former Bayern Munich and Chelsea legend Arjen Robben due to his impressive ability to cut inside, beat defenders and curl in shots with his left foot.

Norway boss Stale Solbakken told EuroSport: “He is a notorious goalscorer. He has an exceptional left foot and a nose for goal. He scores goals in very different ways.”

Egeli after his first call-up was asked by local media about the comparisons to Robben and confidently responded: “I would say my left foot is clearly my greatest skill. You can say that I’m a bit like Arjen Robben, since I’m on the right and like to cut in. But I’m probably not quite the same (as him).

“The development I have had in the last year has been very great. In the last two months, I have gained a lot of confidence and I have played well when I have had the chance. I have shown myself and scored a number of goals.”

Speculation surrounding a move for the 18-year-old comes at a time when Newcastle are believed to be on the hunt for a right sided winger, with Miguel Almiron (30) and Jacob Murphy (29) both approaching the twilight years of their careers. The Magpies were linked with French star Michael Olise before his move from Crystal Palace to Bayern Munich and also made a deadline day approach for Nottingham Forest attacker Anthony Elanga.

However, one player that is unlikely to make the move to St James’ Park in January is Bruno Guimaraes’ Brazil teammate Antony, who is currently out of favour at Manchester United. The 24-year-old, who signed for Manchester United in 2022 for a reported £81.3m, has played just one minute of Premier League football this season and has been linked with a move to St James’ Park to try and revive his confidence, via Caught Offside.

However, according to ESPN, the 16-time Brazil international remains committed to the Red Devils and is determined to stay for the time being. Antony is reportedly also the subject of interest from Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce, but claims the Premier League remains his preference for the foreseeable future.