Newcastle offered £45m including bonuses for Lille's Boubakary Soumare; Bruce confirms club failed in signing Chelsea's Olivier Giroud
Friday 31 January 2020 14:26, UK
Steve Bruce admits Newcastle were close to breaking their club-record transfer fee for a mystery midfielder - believed to be Lille's Boubakary Soumare.
A deal totalling £45m including bonuses was accepted by the French side, which would have smashed the £40m figure spent on Brazilian forward Joelinton last summer.
However, the player rejected the move and the Newcastle boss says he was "disappointed" to miss out on the club's number one target this month.
Although Bruce would not go into specifics, he said: "We had a bid accepted by a club which would have nearly got to a club-record transfer."
"Unfortunately the player wanted to stay where he was which was a big disappointment as he was our number one target.
"We were really active but we couldn't get it over the line."
However, Bruce is adamant he remains happy with the club's January transfer window business despite also confirming Chelsea's Olivier Giroud rejected a move to St James' Park.
"I've always said if there is someone out there better than what we've got and will improve us then we will try to act," Bruce said.
"The one thing we haven't done is panic into what we've wanted to get - we've acted in the right way.
"Of course we'd loved to have brought another forward into the club but it wasn't possible.
"But I've always said that if we can't get the right one then we will wait and keep our powder dry until the summer when the market is far easier for all of us."
Bruce also admitted links of a club takeover by Saudi Arabia's Sovereign Wealth Fund is not only "unsettling" but claimed he was told by managing director Lee Charnley "there is nothing in it".
"I don't get involved [on the takeover talk], I leave that to other people and just concentrate on what I can affect," Bruce added.
"Of course it has an unsettling effect on everyone I won't lie but somehow we are getting used to it.
"I have a good relationship with Lee Charnley and I am sure if there was something to talk about then I would be told - at the moment all he's said is that there is nothing in it."
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