Newcastle United £52m transfer target suffers season-ending injury - manager ‘blames himself’

Newcastle United transfer target Khephren Thuram’s 2022-23 season is over after sustaining a hamstring injury.

The 22-year-old’s impressive campaign in France has attracted interest from the Magpies and other clubs such as Chelsea, Liverpool and Paris Saint-Germain.

And there are fears the midfielder has played his last game for Nice after being ruled out of their remaining three Ligue 1 matches versus Toulouse, Montpellier and Lyon.

“There is a good chance that his very long season will be over a little faster than it should have been“, said Nice boss Didier Digard.

Thuram has played in all of the French outfit’s 48 matches this term and Digard revealed his regret at not giving the player a rest.

He added: “At some point, I have to think about the player and give him a breather. I didn’t and I blame myself for it.”

The combative 6ft 4in midfielder, whose current contract doesn’t expire until 2025, is reportedly valued at £52million.

Khephren is the brother of Borussia Monchengladbach forward Marcus Thuram, who has also been linked with Newcastle because of his close friendship with Allan Saint-Maximin.

Marcus is set to become a free agent this summer and Saint-Maximin has gone public with his hopes of seeing him at St James’ Park.

“He is a great player and I hope we have a chance to take him here,” Saint-Maximin said in December. “I was so happy for him [to play at the World Cup].”

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