Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Toon told to cough up £30m
MIGUEL ALMIRON will cost Newcastle £30million-plus.
The price for the Atlanta United attacker has been revealed after the Paraguay international helped his club win the MLS Cup at the weekend.
He is Rafa Benitez’s No.1 transfer target for next month, and has been likened to Gareth Bale by his club chief.
But Premier League teams, including Arsenal and West Ham, have been warned he will not leave on the cheap.
Atlanta president Darren Eales, formerly a Spurs director, said: “I’ll only get out of bed when it starts with a three. That is the sort of level it has to be for a player of his quality.
“He’s that good? Yes, he’s great. I’m not surprised there is interest from top clubs. He has great ability.
“He’s faster with the ball than without. He reminds me a lot of Gareth Bale in that respect, from when I was at Spurs. He went from Paraguay to Argentina, proved himself, then came to America.
“One of his greatest qualities is he does both sides of the game, attacking and defending. He’s a mercurial talent.
“He scores free-kicks, he sets up people. He also tracks back. He’ll make a 60-yard run to tackle back, the ultimate in terms of going both ways. He’s a team player.
“The reality is he’s under contract at a club that’s just won the title, plays in front of over 70,000 fans and has an owner who is a billionaire and has had a taste of winning.
“So it has to be an offer that’s going to be good for the player, good for the league and importantly good for Atlanta United.”