Newcastle are attempting to sign the England defender Marc Guéhi from Crystal Palace and have begun negotiating a deal that could provide Eddie Howe with the centre-half he has been seeking all summer.

It is thought Newcastle would have to pay about £60m for Guéhi after his impressive performances at Euro 2024 but Howe has prioritised a centre-half and the right-wing as key areas for reinforcement. Newcastle’s manager has a longstanding interest in Milan’s right-sided German central defender Malick Thiaw but with talks with the Serie A side failing to progress, attention has turned to Guéhi.

The 24-year-old, who has two years on his contract, would be earmarked to partner Sven Botman once Howe’s left-sided centre-half returns from a serious knee injury near Christmas but he could initially play alongside Switzerland’s Fabian Schär.

Negotiations remain at an early stage and a deal is far from done for a player St James’ Park executives accept could attract significant bids from clubs across Europe.

Newcastle are close to signing the Denmark Under-21 forward William Osula from Sheffield United for an initial £10m. Osula, who turns 21 on Sunday, was on the fringes of Chris Wilder’s first team last season but Paul Mitchell, Newcastle’s sporting director, is understood to have identified him as having immense potential, capable of playing across the frontline in addition to understudying Howe’s Sweden striker Alexander Isak.