NORWICH CITY have rejected Newcastle United’s £8m bid for Jacob Murphy, but Magpies manager Rafael Benitez is refusing to give up on his pursuit of the England Under-21 international.

Having tracked a number of different midfield targets this summer, Benitez has identified Murphy as his preferred option as he looks to enhance his side’s attacking threat.

Newcastle’s recruitment team have held formal discussions with their counterparts at Carrow Road, and offered to pay £8m for Murphy, with the vast majority of the fee coming up front.

However, Norwich have turned down their offer, with new Canaries boss Daniel Farke insisting he does not want to lose Murphy, who was one of England’s star performers at the recent European Under-21 Championships.

The Newcastle hierarchy are hoping their stance is merely a negotiating ploy, and are preparing to make another approach within the next couple of days.

Sources close to the deal claim they are willing to increase their initial offer slightly, although managing director Lee Charnley will be understandably reluctant to be drawn into a protracted bidding war.

Murphy scored two goals against Newcastle last season, and impressed in both of Norwich’s matches against the Magpies. A product of Norwich’s academy system, the 22-year-old made 37 Championship appearances last term, scoring nine goals.

Newcastle’s determination to try to push through a deal reflects the difficulties they have experienced in their transfer dealings this summer.

A long-standing interest in Liverpool winger Sheyi Ojo has been shelved because of Liverpool’s financial demands for a season-long loan deal, while Newcastle’s interest in Middlesbrough winger Adama Traore has also been put on the back burner because of the Teessiders’ reluctance to sell the wide man.

Benitez also inquired about former Manchester City midfielder Jesus Navas, but the 31-year-old free agent is set to return to Spain rather than remain in the Premier League.

With so many targets falling by the wayside, Swansea’s Jefferson Montero has re-emerged as a potential option, with the Swans looking to sell the Ecuadorian.

Newcastle looked into the possibility of signing Montero in January, only for talks over a potential deal to collapse when Magpies officials were unable to broker an acceptable loan agreement.

Swansea are willing to sell for around £4m this summer, but while Benitez is interested, there are understandable concerns about Montero’s injury record given that he only made two Premier League starts in the whole of last season.

Meanwhile, Newcastle youngster Tom Heardman has signed a new one-year deal at St James’ Park, and will spend next season on loan at League One side Bury, playing under former Magpies midfielder Lee Clark.

“Tom is a really good young player that I have been monitoring for around a year now at Newcastle United,” said Clark. “I have seen the progress that he has made, and he will be a different type of striker to the ones that we already have here at the club.

“At six feet four, he is a good target man, he has a lot of ability and a good touch on the ball. He works hard, works the channels. We also feel we can help him develop, and he can also be an asset for us over the coming season, so we are delighted to get him on board with us.”