Newcastle United, Liverpool and Arsenal ‘enter’ five-way battle for Leeds United star

England midfielder linked with move to Tyneside

Newcastle are one of five Premier League clubs monitoring Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips - according to 90mins.

The 25-year-old has risen to prominence over the last three seasons and has been a consistent figure in Marcelo Bielsa’s side.

That saw Phillips earn a place in England’s Euro 2020 squad and he was described as “fantastic” by Magpies legend Alan Shearer following his display in the group stage win against Croatia.

The Mirror have reported Phillips could attract a fee of around £60million - but that has not put off Newcastle, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and West Ham United.

Magpies expected to make a further bid for Spain international

Newcastle were heavily linked with a move for Napoli midfielder Fabian Ruiz and reports in Italy suggested they had an offer rejected during the January transfer window.

Ruiz will enter the final 12 months of his existing contract this summer and talks over a potential extension are said to have stalled.

Calciomercato have suggested Newcastle, Arsenal and Manchester United are all monitoring the situation -  but all three could be left disappointed as Ruiz is said to be hoping to return to Spain and his “preference” is to join either Barcelona or Real Madrid.

German giants provide competition for Ekitike

There was a flurry of excitement in the early hours of deadline day in January when it was confirmed Newcastle had made a successful bid for Reims’ highly-rated striker Hugo Ekitike.

The forward eventually rejected a move to Tyneside but Newcastle remain keen to add Ekitike to their squad this summer.

However, they will face competition from Bundesliga giants Borussia Dortmund, who see the France U20 international as a potential replacement for star striker Erling Haaland according to German outlet Bild.

Italy star rejected’ Newcastle move

Newcastle were unsuccessful in a January bid for Torino forward Andrea Belotti after the Italian international rejected a move to Tyneside - according to Italian website CalcioMercato.

The 28-year-old is out of contract at the end of the season and is believed to be attracting interest from the likes of Toronto, Atalanta and Napoli.

But the report suggests Belotti is hoping to secure a move to AC Milan as they look to revamp their options at the top end of the pitch.