Newcastle snubbed again! Parma chief reveals Magpies' 'high' Giovanni Leoni offer was rebuffed before £30m Liverpool transfer

Parma CEO Federico Cherubini revealed that they had received a higher offer for Giovanni Leoni from Newcastle United before they sold the defender to Liverpool for €35 million (£30m/$40m) in the summer transfer window. The Reds were in search of a new defender earlier in the summer and after going through multiple profiles, they zeroed in on Leoni.

  • Parma chief revealed Newcastle wanted Leoni
  • The Italian side rejected the offer
  • Leoni joined in the summer

Newcastle snubbed again! Parma chief reveals Magpies' 'high' Giovanni Leoni offer was rebuffed before £30m Liverpool transferNewcastle snubbed again! Parma chief reveals Magpies' 'high' Giovanni Leoni offer was rebuffed before £30m Liverpool transferNewcastle snubbed again! Parma chief reveals Magpies' 'high' Giovanni Leoni offer was rebuffed before £30m Liverpool transfer

Newcastle missed out on several of their summer and had even had to sell their star striker, Alexander Isak, to Liverpool on deadline day. The Magpies eyed moves for high-profile stars like Hugo Ekitike and Benjamin Sesko, but the two strikers eventually ended up at Liverpool and , respectively.

Now, Parma chief Cherubini has claimed that Magpies had also eyed a move for Leoni in the summer and had even submitted a massive bid for the defender, higher than the price that the Italian side had eventually got from the sale of the player to Liverpool.

Speaking to Gazzetta di Parma (via Fabrizio Romano), the Parma official said: “We rejected a higher offer from Newcastle for Leoni. But plans have changed with Liverpool. This is because the offer was very attractive and because Giovanni made it clear he was very happy to join Liverpool.”

The Reds have kicked off their title defence campaign on a high, as they maintained a hundred per cent win record in their first three matches. They will be back in action on September 14 as they play away from home.