Newcastle Nears £30 Million Deal for Benfica Defender Amar Dedić
Newcastle are racing the clock to land Benfica defender Amar Dedić in time for the start of their Premier League campaign, with a deal worth up to £30 million close to the finish line.
The club have an agreement in principle on the fee for the 23-year-old, according to TeamTalk, and the framework of the move is now set. The heavy lifting is done. What remains are the finer details: the final legal wording, the last checks, the signatures that turn intent into reality.
On the player’s side, everything is already lined up. Dedić has agreed personal terms on a five-year contract, with the Bosnia and Herzegovina international ready to commit his prime years to St James’ Park. Newcastle hope to put him through a medical this weekend, a key step in getting the transfer over the line before the new season kicks off.
The urgency is not just ambition. It’s necessity.
Tino Livramento is still battling fitness issues and is not yet fully up to speed ahead of the new campaign. Newcastle cannot afford to roll into their opener short at full-back, not with Liverpool arriving on Tyneside next Sunday. The club’s hierarchy want Dedić not only signed, but registered and integrated into the first-team group in time to be considered for that game.
That timeline is aggressive. It also underlines how highly they rate him.
Dedić brings something Newcastle badly need: flexibility across the back line. He is primarily a right-back, but he can switch to the left and has experience filling in as a centre-back. For a squad preparing for the grind of a long season, that kind of adaptability is gold.
It also hands head coach Matthias Jaissle another trusted piece in his tactical puzzle.
Jaissle knows exactly what he is buying. The pair worked closely together at RB Salzburg and Liefering in Austria, where Dedić developed into one of the most reliable young defenders in the system. That shared history matters. Jaissle is fully behind the move and believes Dedić can slot straight into the side and raise the level from day one.
Inside the boardrooms, executives from Newcastle and Benfica are now working through the last clauses of what is described as an intricate agreement. Performance-related add-ons, payment structures, registration timings – the details are being ironed out in real time.
The mood on Tyneside is increasingly confident. If the next few days unfold as Newcastle expect, Dedić will be signed, sealed and eligible just in time for one of the toughest opening fixtures imaginable.
Liverpool at St James’ Park. A new era under Jaissle. And, if all goes to plan, a familiar face for the coach lining up in black and white on the opening weekend.
