Newcastle United face Man City, Ajax and Inter Milan transfer battle for £13m-rated record breaker

Newcastle United will reportedly face competition from Premier League champions Manchester City if they opt to move for Armenian international Eduard Spertsyan.

The 23-year-old attacking midfielder is said to be attracting interest from both Premier League clubs after impressing for Russian club Krasnodar with five goals and three assists in just 13 appearances so far this season.

Spertsyan worked his way through the Krasnodar academy setup before making his senior debut as a substitute against FC Khimki in September 2020, with a Champions League debut against Chelsea following just over a month later.

The latter of those performances earned Spertsyan a place in the record books as he became the youngster Armenian to feature in a Champions League group stage fixture, beating the previous record held by former Manchester United and Arsenal star Henrikh Mkhitaryan by over a year.

After establishing himself in the Krasnodar first team, Spertsyan has gone on to score 27 goals and provide 21 assists in 88 appearances in all competitions and that has reportedly brought him to the attention of a number of clubs around Europe.

The likes of Ajax, Feyenoord, Lyon and Inter Milan have all been suggested as possible suitors - but it is City and Newcastle that are the latest to be reported as monitoring the progress of a player that has already hinted he would be tempted by a move to a club competing in European competition.

Italian outlet TuttoMercatoWeb quoted the midfielder as saying: “Yes (I want to play in Europe soon). I’ve got to fight and work (for it). I don’t want to leave here by running away or with a helicopter.

“I like being here. But I want to try to go to Europe while I have the chance, I don’t know what can happen there. I’m confident and I think I can do it, I mean, achieve even bigger goals. (Transfer fee is) about 15 million euros. At least, (the club president) thinks so.”

Spertsyan will be in action on Tuesday when he could earn his 20th cap for Armenia in a friendly against North Macedonia.