boss has revealed that the club may be ‘forced’ to sell Allan Saint-Maximin after admitting he’s in talks over a move to Saudi Arabia.
The Frenchman has been a fans’ favourite in the north-east since his arrival from Nice in 2019.
The winger struggled with injuries last season and made just 31 appearances, scoring once.
Despite their new-found riches and qualification for the , Newcastle are walking a Financial Fair Play tightrope.
The Magpies signed Antony Gordon for a fee of around £50m in January and Sandro Tonali’s arrived from AC Milan this summer for £55m.
Howe admits the club must balance the books in order to continue signing players and he’s reaveled Saint-Maximin could be sacrificed following interest from an unnamed Saudi Arabian club.
‘He’s in early discussions over a potential move away,’ Howe said.
‘It’s doubtful he’ll join us on the tour of . I don’t think Maxi necessarily wants to leave, but he may feel it’s the right time for him to move.”
‘It’s difficult for me to speak for him, but he hasn’t asked to leave. There’s been no issue between him and any of us coaches. We all love him.
‘If he does leave, we’d lose him with a very heavy heart. He’s someone we love working with, he’s a difference-maker, we’ve really had a strong working relationship, and it’ll be sad if he leaves.
‘Maxi is the player that’s generating the interest. FFP is a new dynamic which really came to the fore after my first window here when we knew it would impact us.
‘Player trading is a key part of it – you can’t hit it, if you don’t trade. We’re forced to trade a player this window.
‘If the deal didn’t go through, I’d be delighted. It would obviously impact our ability to bring any more players in, and then we potentially might have to sell another player. That’s the way that Financial Fair Play has hit us.’
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