Newcastle agree £6m deal for highly-rated winger Yankuba Minteh

Newcastle United have agreed terms with Danish side Odense for Gambian winger Yankuba Minteh, 90min understands.

The Magpies have been tracking Minteh for much of this year and they have now moved to secure a deal worth around £6m for the 18-year-old.

Newcastle were not alone in watching Minteh, with Brighton, Everton, Club Brugge, Ajax, Feyenoord and Marseille among the teams impressed with him.

The teenager moved to Europe last summer from Steve Biko FC in his homeland and has impressed with an excellent debut campaign which saw him score six goals and provide seven assists in just 21 games.

Ahead of Minteh’s move this summer, Odense have decided to leave the player out of this weekend’s clash with FC Midtjylland.

The club’s sporting director, Bjorn Wesstrom, said: “It is a difficult decision, but with the risks and opportunities in this case, I have concluded that it is overall the best decision that he sit out the match against FC Midtjylland.”

Last month, Minteh himself admitted he was ready to accept an offer on the table from Newcastle.

“Of course I want to go to Newcastle,” he said. “It is a big club in the Premier League, and they are doing something good. I am ready to take the next step and it will only be good for me.”

Newcastle are looking to bring in some marquee signings to bolster their first-team this summer, but their long-term plan also involves spotting potential world-class talent and quickly snapping them up.

They did this last summer when landing Australian teenager Garang Kuol. Like Kuol, who spent much of the 2022/23 season on loan at Hearts, Minteh is expected to be loaned out upon arrival.