Newcastle have made contact with Burnley over the possibility of signing Maxwel Cornet, who scored nine Premier League goals for the Clarets last season.

The Magpies have already signed goalkeeper Nick Pope from Burnley this summer and Cornet is expected to be the next big name to leave Turf Moor before the transfer deadline, with winger Dwight McNeil having also joined Everton for £20m in recent days.

Cornet was left out of Burnley’s squad for Friday night’s Championship win over Huddersfield.

90min understands that Newcastle have stopped short of making an opening offer for the 25-year-old Ivory Coast international because their preference is to pay a fee in instalments.

Cornet has a release clause in his Burnley contract, but Newcastle would be prepared to pay more than that if it means avoiding having to cough up cash all in one go. They could push the fee up to between £20m and £22m, which is a major rise on the £12.9m Burnley paid Lyon last summer.

Crucially, Burnley would be open to such a proposal. However, there is believed to be rival interest in Cornet from three or four other Premier League clubs.

Newcastle’s summer spending currently stands at around £60m, with Sven Botman and a permanent deal for Matt Targett completed in addition to the aforementioned Pope.

The Magpies finished 11th in the Premier League last season, despite being in the relegation zone until January. Eddie Howe’s side won 12 of their final 18 games to make the campaign a relative success in the circumstances, compared to only one win their opening 20.

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