Premier League rich kids Newcastle United could be set to miss out on a key defensive target as Serie A giants AC Milan looked to have moved ahead in the queue for Dutch international defender Sven Botman.

The 22-year-old LOSC Lille defensive stalwart was subject to intense interest from the Magpies who labeled the Dutchman as their number one defensive target during the January transfer window but had their advances rebuffed by the French outfit after offering up to €50million to prize him from the Stade Pierre-Mauroy despite the financial issues gripping Les Dogues at current.

Meeting ongoing between the agents of Sven Botman and AC Milan board in Milano. He’s AC Milan priority as they will sign a new centre back in June. #ACMilan

Newcastle wanted to offer €50m three days before Deadline Day – but Lille considered Botman ‘untouchable’ in Jan.

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) February 10, 2022

Now, their failure to successfully negotiate a deal for Botman could come back to haunt them as they look to add further quality to the backline under Eddie Howe after Milan has held in-person talks with Botman’s representatives, as reported by Fabrizio Romano.

Video clips of Botman’s entourage leaving Casa Milan earlier today made their way to Twitter, confirming that talks did indeed take place as Milan looked to secure their own defensive reinforcements during the upcoming summer window.

Newcastle struggling to find key center-back upgrade

The notion that Newcastle has not made ample attempts at addressing an inexcusable defensive record during the first half of the 2021-22 Premier League campaign would be a poor one after the Magpies concluded deals for three additions in January.

Kieran Trippier, Dan Burn, and Matthew Targett all arrived on Tyneside during the first month of the new year but more has been needed at St. James’ Park if the situation is to be dealt with appropriately, and missing out on both Sven Botman and Seville standout Diego Carlos in January was certainly a bit of a blow for football in the northeast.

Newcastle has also been linked with the likes of Wolves’ Conor Coady, Burnley’s James Tarkowski, and West Ham’s Issa Diop as other possible transfer candidates. One can certainly expect that the club will continue to push down this avenue until a center-back keystone is acquired and bedded into the club over the summer period.