Newcastle United Near Deal for Højbjerg as Marseille Faces Departure

Newcastle United are closing on a deal for Pierre-Emile Højbjerg, with Olympique de Marseille ready to cash in on one of their most reliable midfield pillars.

According to Foot Mercato, negotiations between the clubs are at an advanced stage, with a fee of around €15 million on the table. Newcastle want the move wrapped up this week as they move quickly to plug the gap left by Bruno Guimarães’ departure to Arsenal.

Guimarães has been the heartbeat of Newcastle’s midfield, the player Eddie Howe built his structure around. Losing him to Arsenal leaves more than a tactical hole; it strips Newcastle of personality in the centre of the pitch. Højbjerg, at 31, offers something different: less sparkle, more steel. But right now, steel is exactly what they need.

For Marseille, the deal is as much about survival as strategy. With limited financial room to manoeuvre and a clear need to stabilise their accounts, a sale at this price for a player entering his thirties is hard to turn down. The agreement would inject much-needed funds into a club that has been juggling ambition with economic reality for several seasons.

It is not a simple goodbye, though. Højbjerg has been more than a squad piece on the Canebière. Since arriving two years ago, he has been a constant presence and a manager’s dream: available, disciplined, and dependable.

In his first season, he started all 32 of his appearances. No rotation, no easing in. Straight into the core of the team. In his second campaign, he went even further: 43 appearances, 40 of them from the start, plus eight outings in the Champions League. When Marseille needed a platform, he provided it.

That level of consistency is exactly what Newcastle are buying. Premier League intensity will not surprise him. He knows it well from his spells at Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur, where he built a reputation as a combative, tactically aware midfielder who relishes the dirty work others shy away from.

For Newcastle, this is a move shaped by urgency but not panic. They are not trying to replace Guimarães like-for-like; that would be impossible in the current market at this price point. Instead, they are rebuilding the spine: a seasoned international who can anchor the midfield, protect the defence, and free their more creative players to attack.

For Marseille, it is the end of a short but significant chapter. They lose a leader on the pitch, but gain financial breathing space they simply cannot ignore.

If the deal is finalised in the coming days, Højbjerg will walk back into a league he knows, into a club that desperately needs his experience, and into a midfield that suddenly has a very different face.