Newcastle United ready to revisit move for 21-year-old Moroccan star after impressive midweek brace
Newcastle United are one of several English clubs looking to raid Championship side Leicester City in the summer but may face a big issue.
Last season, Newcastle United were reported to be interested in young Moroccan midfielder Bilal El Khannouss after impressing at Leicester City, but a move never materialised.
Instead, the 21-year-old headed to VfB Stuttgart on loan where he's gone on to score eight goals and lay on six assists in all competitions, including a brace against Celtic in the Europa League play-off in midweek.
That performance has apparently sparked Newcastle's interest yet again, according to Sports Boom, but they aren't thought to be alone.
Newcastle have reignited their interest in Bilal El Khannouss
Crystal Palace, Leeds United and Tottenham Hotspur are also looking at the Stuttgart loanee now, but it's the German side who hold the strongest advantage right now.
As part of the loan move that took El Khannouss to Germany, there's an obligation to buy inserted into the deal that is triggered when certain criteria are reached.
We aren't aware of what the trigger for the £17 million move is, but given his decent goals return, there's a good chance he's close to it already.
Bilal El Khannouss has plenty of traits of an Eddie Howe signing
Even if Stuttgart are obligated to make the move permanent with a £17 million outlay, there's nothing to say they won't be tempted to sell him straight away if a Premier League club offers them a big enough sum.
It looks almost certain that El Khannouss played his last game for Leicester City, and now it's just a case of seeing where he'll be playing next season.
Bilal El Khannouss has been on fire in the Europa League, where he's scored five goals in eight games this season, which shows he's got what it takes to perform in the big occasion, and at 21, that's an impressive trait to have.
