Newcastle expect to appoint Unai Emery as manager before Brighton clash as they close in on ex-Arsenal boss

NEWCASTLE have opened talks with Unai Emery over the Spaniard becoming their new boss. And he could be in place by the time they play Brighton this weekend. The Magpies have spent the last fortnight on the hunt for Steve Bruce’s successor. Toon bosses have narrowed their shortlist down to two names; Emery and Eddie […]

NEWCASTLE have opened talks with Unai Emery over the Spaniard becoming their new boss.

And he could be in place by the time they play Brighton this weekend.

AFP

Unai Emery has emerged as Newcastle’s No1 target[/caption]

The Magpies have spent the last fortnight on the hunt for Steve Bruce’s successor.

Toon bosses have narrowed their shortlist down to two names; Emery and Eddie Howe.

Ex-Arsenal boss Emery has emerged as their leading contender, with talks now progressing.

Should Newcastle convince him to join, Villarreal will be owed £5.1million in compensation.

His current deal with the LaLiga side runs until 2023 – but the Magpies are confident that they will convince him to join.

They believe that they will have the 49-year-old in place for this weekend’s clash with Brighton.

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The Toon will have to pay Emery the sort of salary he was earning at Arsenal to lure him to St James’ Park.

Emery joined the Gunners in 2018, succeeding Arsene Wenger at the Emirates.

But he was sacked by the North Londoners in November 2019 following a difficult spell.

He has since rebuilt his reputation with Villarreal, most notably winning the Europa League last season – beating Manchester United in the final.

His side haven’t had a good start to this season, however, sitting 13th in LaLiga having won just two of their opening 13 games.

Newcastle have been linked with a number of bosses, including Frank Lampard and Paulo Fonseca.

But Emery is the man they have identified to steer them away from the relegation zone before taking them towards the European places.

Should he turn them down, however, they will reportedly turn to Howe – who has been out of work since leaving Bournemouth at the end of the 2019-20 season.

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Eddie Howe has been out of work for over a year[/caption]