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Newcastle United have come up short in multiple transfer races so far this summer. Victor Munoz ended up at Liverpool. Johan Manzambi chose Aston Villa. Joao Palhinha seems to have his sights set elsewhere. Of course, a large part of that is down to the club not having Champions League or any form of European football on offer. But at the same time, one has to wonder if the overall project is no longer appealing to players either. Tottenham Hotspur, for example, have had little problem signing players despite back-to-back 17th-place finishes. On the other hand, it has been a mighty struggle for Newcastle United. So, the idea of them having to competing with other top clubs for a signing will be a worry for Newcastle United fans. And as it turns out, they have fallen behind Man Utd in the race to sign a centre-back. Man Utd leading race to sign centre-back also wanted by Newcastle According to TEAMtalk, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United are all monitoring Edmond Tapsoba closely. Man Utd appear to be the most advanced in their discussions to sign the Bayer Leverkusen centre-back at present. The 27-year-old has been at Bayer Leverkusen since 2020. He is also a full international for Burkina Faso. So, he has plenty of experience and at the prime age to make a jump to the Premier League. Tapsoba is seen as the perfect profile for a centre-back in a team that wants to play possession-based football. After all, he was a part of Xabi Alonso’s iconic Bayer Leverkusen team that won the Bundesliga a few years back. Unsurprisingly, he was linked with a move to Chelsea earlier in the summer. But that no longer seems to be on the cards after the club signed Maxence Lacroix from Crystal Palace. While that helps the chances of other clubs looking to sign Tapsoba, will it be enough for Newcastle United? Or will they come up short once again? Newcastle United must sign a centre-back this summer Newcastle United badly need to add another centre-back to their ranks this summer. That is an area of the pitch that has not gotten enough attention, as the focus has been on the midfield following the exits of Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali. One cannot overlook the fact though that both Dan Burn and Fabian Schar are 34 years of age. Add Sven Botman’s injury history and poor pre-season performances to the mix, and it feels like there could be issues in the future if the situation is not addressed. Tapsoba is one of the few centre-backs that has been linked with the Magpies lately. But it looks like Old Trafford is a more likely destination for him.