Newcastle United ‘come forward’ to sign £25m star who scored against Magpies in pre-season

Newcastle United are hoping to beat Paris Saint-Germain, Nottingham Forest and Wolverhampton Wanderers to the signing of Benfica’s highly-rated forward Goncalo Ramos.

The 21-year-old frontman has made a big impression at Estadio Da Luz over the last year and has attracted attention from a number of clubs across Europe.

Significantly, the Magpies have already been given a taste of what a move for Ramos could offer after he scored against Eddie Howe’s side in a pre-season friendly last month.

Ramos opened the scoring with a neat near-post header on the quarter-hour mark as Benfica claimed a 3-2 win over United to claim the annual Eusebio Cup.

Talk has quickly turned towards his future and the Portugal Under-21 star is said to be the latest name under consideration within the Magpies hierachy.

A move for RB Salzburg youngster Benjamin Sesko and the protracted attempts to sign Hugo Ekitike prior to his switch to Paris Saint-Germain failed to come to fruition - but United are still determined to add at least one forward to their ranks before the window closes next month.

Intriguingly, one report in Portugal has suggested Benfica would be willing to part with Ramos for around £25million and Newcastle are said to be ready to meet their demands and set up a deal to bring the forward to Tyneside.

SIC Noticas journalist Pedro Sepulveda posted an update regarding the potential move via his Twitter account on Tuesday evening, saying: “Newcastle interested in Gonçalo Ramos. The British will come forward with a proposal in the coming days. @SLBenfica can sell the Portuguese striker for a value above 30 million euros.”

Ramos is attracting interest from Premier League rivals Forest and Wolves - although PSG’s potential move for the forward seems unlikely after their added former Magpies target Ekitike to an attacking lineup already featuring the likes of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe.

Ramos has already been among the goals this season after plundering a hat-trick in the second leg of Benfica’s Champions League third qualifying round tie against Danish side FC Midtjylland.

Speaking after the game, Benfica manager Roger Schmidt addressed the player’s performance and the interest he has attracted in recent weeks.

He told BTV: “Gonçalo Ramos played a very good game. He scored three goals but we feel he could have scored a goal or two more. He’s a forward who likes to play in that position and he has good players around him like David Neres, João Mário and Rafa, which helps. He also has the quality to finish in front of goal.

“I’m very happy to have him as a player and I think he’s happy at Benfica too. He’s an interesting player for other clubs, but Benfica have a lot of good players who are also interesting. He’s here with us at the moment and I’m not worried about that.”

Benfica and Ramos will face a two-legged tie against Dynamo Kiev as they look to reach the group stages of the Champions League and that could delay a possible move away from the club.