La Liga side Athletic Bilbao’s hopes of signing Borussia Dortmund out-of-favour midfielder Mikel Merino are slim to none according to the latest reports coming from Spain.
Spanish media outlet Marca is reporting that Newcastle United have swooped in and beaten the Basque club to the signature of the 21-year-old Spanish international.
The Magpies are thought to have already arranged a deal with the Bundesliga club as Mikel Merino packs his bags for a season-long deal with an obligatory purchase clause if the midfielder plays a certain number of games at St James’ Park.
Merino is coming off from a disappointing season in Germany. The Spanish midfielder only made 6 Bundesliga outings, two of which were starts.
He also made a single DFB Pokal appearance in what has been a largely underwhelming campaign for the Borussia Dortmund man.
Merino was widely expected to join Athletic Bilbao this summer, but the Basque side which has a rather limited recruitment base as a club that only signs players from Basque regions would have to look elsewhere.
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