United States men's national team defender DeAndre Yedlin and his representatives are set to speak with Newcastle United to discuss his future, as a departure from the club likely in the cards, sources tell CBS Sports. The former Seattle Sounders man is set to start Wednesday's match against Manchester City as his time in Tyneside winds down.
Yedlin, along with representatives from both sides, will conduct a formal meeting on Monday to map out a plan for what's next, with teams throughout Europe showing interest in the 26-year-old right back.
Yedlin's contract is set to expire in the summer of 2021 and he has yet to receive an extension offer from Newcastle. The club just signed right back Javier Manquillo to a contract extension in June and have Emil Krafth under contract through 2023, though the Swedish international is expected to give central defender a go against City, sources say.
Yedlin has dealt with injury issues as of late and missed out on the 2019 Gold Cup for the United States. He has played in 15 matches for Newcastle this season and scored just once in the Premier League. He's been at the club since 2016 and helped them earn promotion to the Premier League for the 2017-18 season.
Clubs throughout Europe have shown interest in Yedlin, including in Germany. Sources say it's about a 90 percent chance that Yedlin leaves Newcastle as he no longer appears to be in the plans of manager Steve Bruce. Yedlin is focused on remaining in one of the top five leagues in Europe though Spain and Italy are more complicated due to work permit rules and passport issues.
The club is on the verge of being purchased by a Saudi Arabia-backed group that appears set to invest heavily in the squad, which serves as just further proof as to how Yedlin doesn't factor into the plans long term. The ownership change from Mike Ashley to that of businesswoman Amanda Stavely and the Saudi Arabian backing is reportedly worth $391 million, but has not yet been finalized.
It's unclear what type of transfer fee Newcastle could get in this market, but the club did pay £5 million ($6.3 million) for him from Tottenham. There is the possibility of a swap deal due to the financial climate amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Newcastle is historically one of the usual top-flight Premier League clubs, last winning the second division title in 1992-93. Newcastle has been relegated twice in the last 11 seasons. The team finished 10th in the Premier League in 2017-18 and 13th in 2018-19. This season, the club is in 12th place and 16 points clear of relegation.
