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NEWCASTLE UNITED WERE INTERESTED IN SIGNING ABDUKODIR KHUSANOV IN JANUARY BUT MANCHESTER CITY 'NEEDED TO MOVE EARLY' AND THE CITIZENS INTEND TO BE AGGRESSIVE THIS SUMMER, TOO
11:00, 30 May 2025 Eddie Howe has stressed the need for speed at Newcastle United - and is it any wonder when Manchester City plan to assemble a 'new squad' in time for the Club
World Cup. Manchester City, who finished just five points clear of Newcastle, intend to move swiftly when the window opens for a 10-day period on Sunday. That is what Manchester City did in
January, of course, with chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak now revealing that defender Abdukodir Khusanov 'would have made the move this summer but we needed to move early' - and not
only because of the injuries the Citizens had at the back at the time. Newcastle, of course, also held an interest in Khusanov and the centre-back's representative, Gairat Khasbiullin,
even confirmed that the Magpies were 'very close to a deal' but 'Financial Fair Play played a role'. Although Newcastle were not able to recruit in the mid-season window,
the black-and-whites operated like they were - identifying targets and speaking to agents - so that the club did not lose track of the market ahead of the summer window opening. Newcastle
are now in a much stronger PSR position and Howe has highlighted the importance of acting quickly to those above him because 'if you're too late to react you can miss out on
potential transfer that can make the difference'. That same message has clearly been relaid at clubs elsewhere at a time when Chelsea are closing in on Liam Delap, who Newcastle also
made a play for; Liverpool are pushing to sign Florian Wirtz; and aggressive Manchester City have targeted AC Milan midfielder Tijjani Reijnders among others. "[We signed] four players
in January," Al Mubarak said. "That gives you an idea of what’s coming this summer because we will continue this summer with this, serving the needs of the club. "I can tell
you, today, that’s day one of the new season. We have clearly identified who exactly are the targets in what positions and we have our clear number one option, our clear number two option
and we are going about our business. "It will be very clear, very swift, and our objective is to try to be ready with the new squad for the Club World Cup." Manchester City's
first game in the Club World Cup is against Moroccan side Wydad AC on June 18. _Here at ChronicleLive, we are dedicated to bringing you the best NEWCASTLE UNITED coverage and analysis._
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