Valentino Lazaro is on his way to Tyneside after resuming talks with Newcastle United.
Elsewhere, the Magpies have been given a boost in their pursuit of Jarrod Bowen and Danny Rose has been linked with a move to St James' Park.
Here are the top Newcastle United stories for January 23:
Lazaro resumes talks
Newcastle United have resumed conversations with the agent of Valentino Lazaro - and the club hope to hold face to face talks with the player himself in due course.
The player is said to be on his way to Tyneside to continue discussions but club sources say a deal isn’t agreed yet.
A loan deal with an obligation to buy at the end of the season has now been discussed after options with RB Leipzig and Bologna were put to the Austrian international.
Bowen boost
Hull City boss Grant McCann has admitted Newcastle United target Jarrod Bowen could be sold if a new deal is not agreed.
The in-form forward has been linked with moves to a host of Premier League side including the Magpies, as well Championship promotion contenders Leeds United.
Bowen is the Tigers' top scorer with 17 goals in the current campaign, and the club have offered a new deal to the 23-year-old.
The forward's current contract is set to expire in the summer of 2021, and Hull are understood to be wary of losing their prized asset on a free.
Rose linked
Pundit Darren Bent has urged Danny Rose to sign for Newcastle United if an offer is made this month.
The Magpies are reportedly interested in a swoop for Tottenham left-back following season-ending injuries for Paul Dummett and Jetro Willems.
The England international has fallen out of favour and has made 16 appearances in the current campaign, and just two under new boss Jose Mourinho.
Bent made a similar move when he left North London for a prolific two-year spell at Sunderland, and he believes a move to the region could be just what Rose needs to kick-start his career.
Rose himself enjoyed a season-long loan spell with the Black Cats for the 2012/13 campaign, and Bent believes a move away from the capital and Mourinho could benefit the left back.
Borevkovic linked
According to Portuguese publication A Bola, Newcastle are keen on Croatia under-21 defender Toni Borevkovic.
The 22-year-old has impressed for Portuguese side Rio Ave this season and the Magpies are one of a few teams reportedly tracking the centre-half this month.
The report claims Borevkovic is also being tracked by Blackburn Rovers and Bournemouth, as well as Bundesliga sides Borussia Monchengladbach, Wolfsburg and Augsburg.
Bentaleb debut?
Nabil Bentaleb will wear the number 42 shirt at Newcastle United and he is in line to make his debut on Saturday.
The Algerian international midfielder has received international clearance for his loan move from Schalke and he is now free to face Oxford United in the FA Cup fourth round.
The former Tottenham star joined Newcastle on Tuesday but was not registered in time to feature in United's dramatic 2-2 draw against Everton.
However, now his registration and international clearance has been received, he will now enter Steve Bruce's thinking for Saturday's cup clash.
Lascelles on FA Cup mentality
Jamaal Lascelles has revealed how Steve Bruce told Newcastle United players to change their attitude in the FA Cup this season.
The club could be closing in on a full house for the fourth round tie with Oxford United on Saturday where a victory will take them through to the fifth round for the first time since 2006.
Lascelles would love to be the next man to lift a trophy for United and relieve Bob Moncur of the title of the "last captain to lift a major trophy" at Newcastle.
But he is trying to take things step by step, Lascelles told the Chronicle: "If I am being honest I have never thought that far ahead. "
Fazackerley's return
Before Oxford United players have their evening meal in a Durham hotel on Friday and retire to their rooms to visualise what lies ahead at St James' Park, there is the small matter of a training session at Maiden Castle, where the Entertainers were put through their paces by Kevin Keegan.
For the U's players, it gives them a final chance to run through some patterns of play on their first visit to the facility ahead of Saturday's FA Cup fourth-round tie against Newcastle United but for Derek Fazackerley, it will be a slightly surreal experience when he steps off the team coach.
Fazackerley was Newcastle's first-team coach between 1992 and 1995 and still remembers those mornings when thousands of supporters used to watch the Magpies train at Durham University's site.
It was Fazackerley, whistle in mouth, who took centre stage during those nine-a-side sessions that were so intense that Newcastle players often got more injuries in training than they did at the weekend.
FA Cup tickets
Newcastle United have dropped prices again for this weekend’s FA Cup clash with Oxford.
As a special incentive to enable more young supporters to attend United’s Emirates FA Cup game, tickets for children aged 12 and under will, for a limited period of time and subject to availability, be available for just £1.
More than 45,000 tickets have already been sold for Saturday’s fourth round clash and the club has reduced prices further for youngsters wishing to come along to St James’ Park.
