Newcastle and Nottingham Forest ‘in transfer battle for AC Milan midfielder Youssouf Fofana with £17m enquiries made’

NEWCASTLE’S rebuild after their summer exodus is set to continue with a raid of Serie A as the Magpies bear down on the new Premier League season. New boss Matthias Jaissle is looking to add experience after the departures of Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali with deals for Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Joao Palhinha explored. Youssouf Fofana was playing for AC Milan during pre-season until he was recently culled Credit: Getty Fofana joins an extensive list of names that Ruben Amorim wants to see sold Credit: Getty Matteo Moretto has reported that Newcastle has already enquired about AC Milan midfielder Youssouf Fofana after the Serie A club informed the France international he is no longer part of their plans. New boss Ruben Amorim has taken over at the San Siro and, similarly to his days at Manchester United, has already identified the players who will not be able to play in his 3-4-3 formation. Sign up for the Football newsletter Thank you! On the scrapheap with Fofana are names like Christopher Nkunku and Fikayo Tomori, both with Premier League pedigree. Moretto reported, per MilanNews: “Fofana is on his way out, and he was informed of this in person. “I can assure you that there aren’t any advanced negotiations with any specific club at this time. “I can tell you that Nottingham [Forest] have inquired, Newcastle have inquired, and Juventus have inquired.” It’s believed Milan will want something around the £17.3million they paid for the Frenchman from Monaco two years ago to move him on. SUN VEGAS WELCOME OFFER: GET UP TO £100 BONUS Ruben Amorim has continued his tradition of gutting clubs when he takes over Credit: Getty In today’s climate, that has to be considered a bargain. But Newcastle fans will know all too well that when they are battling with teams for a player, they normally end up losing. Most read in Sport Moretto added: “Fofana is certainly an option for Juventus, and the two clubs, Juve and Milan, have spoken and discussed possible situations and market developments.” Newcastle may avoid trying to compete with Juventus and if they are prepared to spend more money – over double, actually – Lucas Bergvall may remain an option for them instead. Comment now