Newcastle United face race against time to register Jacob Ramsey in time to face Aston Villa on Saturday
Newcastle United and Aston Villa are locked in talks over a deal for midfielder Jacob Ramsey, with a £40 million deal looking close to completion.
It feels like the Magpies have moved quickly to get this transfer done, as it was only a couple of days ago we were talking about John McGinn and Jack Rudoni as potential targets.
Now Fabrizio Romano is already teasing a 'here we go' and saying that he expects the deal to be completed today.
That would still leave plenty of work to be done, as Ramsey would need to complete a medical, and all the paperwork would need to be filed.
Newcastle must register Jacob Ramsey before 12pm on Friday to include him in Saturday's squad
With Newcastle facing Aston Villa on Saturday, it would be fitting for Jacob Ramsey to be part of the Newcastle squad that travels to Villa Park so the former England youth international could get a proper send-off.
However, Newcastle would have to ensure that everything was completed before midday on Friday for Ramsey to be eligible.
Players must be registered before 12 pm on the day before a game to be included in the matchday squad, but if things continue to move as quickly as they are, there's a good chance that will happen.
Jacob Ramsey could make his debut against his old club on Saturday
Ramsey will be the replacement for Sean Longstaff and won't be expected to start ahead of the favoured midfield trio of Bruno Guimaraes, Sandro Tonali or Joelinton, but he could take up a spot on the bench on Saturday and maybe make a late cameo.
It would probably be too soon to give Ramsey much more time on the pitch than a few minutes, but it would be a nice way for him to say his goodbyes to the club he's been at since 2007.
We all know that speed hasn't been one of Newcastle's strong points in terms of transfer deals this summer, but it does feel like we've picked up the pace late on.
