Newcastle United have started talks with Chelsea aimed at keeping Christian Atsu at the club on a permanent basis, according to Sky Sports News HQ.
Atsu has just finished his season-long loan at the Magpies, helping Rafael Benitez's men to earn instant promotion back to the Premier League from the Championship.
It had been claimed recently that Newcastle had not yet spoken to Chelsea about keeping Atsu, but that has now changed and talks between the two clubs are taking place.
The former FC Porto winger could be Newcastle's first buy of the summer for a fee of £6.2m.
Atsu featured on a regular basis for Newcastle this season, making a total of 35 appearances across all competitions for the club.
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The 25-year-old chipped in with five goals and three assists, catching Benitez's eye.
Despite being under contract at Stamford Bridge, Atsu has never made a senior first team appearance for the newly crowned Premier League champions.
Atsu's 35 appearances for Newcastle are the most he has made for any club side, with the winger boasting prior spells at Rio Ave, Vitesse, Porto, Malaga, Everton and Bournemouth.
