NEWCASTLE UNITED are on the verge of completing their second signing of the summer, with Emre Belözoglu flying into Tyneside last night to finalise his protracted £4 million transfer from Inter Milan. The Turkey player will have a medical today and sign a long-term contract, after which Graeme Souness, the manager, will focus his attention on prising Luis Boa Morte away from Fulham.

Emre’s move to St James’ Park has not been without its difficulties, but, having spent the past fortnight haggling over personal terms — the 24-year-old earned £60,000 a week at the San Siro — there is delight at Newcastle that another high-profile name has been added to the first-team squad, which has lost six senior players since the end of May. Scott Parker was the club ’s first new addition, leaving Chelsea for £6.5 million.

Emre will operate on the left of the three-man midfield, which Souness intends to play regularly next term, and the manager’s hope is that Boa Morte will plug the gap in front of him. Laurent Robert’s departure to Portsmouth has left Newcastle lacking creativity and the Portugal forward is viewed as a sound candidate to supply crosses for Alan Shearer as well as score goals.

Souness tried to persuade Fulham to sell Boa Morte during the January transfer window, an approach that pushed the London club into offering the 27-year-old an extended deal. Newcastle, though, are expected to try again this week with a formal offer of about £3 million.

Acquiring another established forward and a new central defender are other priorities, while Newcastle have also made moves to tempt Tim Krul, the highly regarded teenage Dutch goalkeeper, to the North East. The Holland Under-17 player has not agreed a professional contract with ADO Den Haag, his present club, who would be entitled to compensation if the Newcastle deal goes ahead.

“If we can land Emre and we can get another couple of high-class players and we can get a wee bit lucky with injuries, I feel we can certainly challenge for a Champions League spot,” Souness said.

Lee Bowyer may follow Robert, Craig Bellamy and Patrick Kluivert through Newcastle’s rapidly revolving exit door, with West Ham United now vying with Birmingham City and Charlton Athletic for the midfield player.

None of Newcastle’s new signings will be pressed into service for the club’s opening fixture in this summer’s Inter-Toto Cup, which begins away to FK ZTS Dubnica on Sunday evening. The draw for the later rounds of the competition was made yesterday and it is likely that Newcastle would face Deportivo La Coruña in the semi-finals, while potential final opponents include Marseilles and Lazio.

Their route to the first round of the Uefa Cup, for which the winners of the InterToto qualify, is therefore daunting, but Souness said: “I’ve been in football long enough to know that the minute you start taking your eye off the ball you can be punished.”

Massimo Maccarone, the Middlesbrough forward, is expected to join Siena, the Italian club, on loan for the season this week.

Sean Thornton has moved from Sunderland to Doncaster Rovers for £175,000, a record outlay for the Coca-Cola League One club.

TOON TARGET

The team that emerges from each section will play off for a place in the Uefa Cup.

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