NEWCASTLE UNITED had a double cause for celebration last night as they claimed a 2-1 win over Premier League champions Manchester City a matter of hours after agreeing a club-record £20m deal for Miguel Almiron.

The Magpies pulled five points clear of the relegation zone as second-half goals from Salomon Rondon and Matt Ritchie enabled them to overturn City’s first-minute advantage that was secured through Sergio Aguero.

On the pitch, Newcastle have answered the criticism that accompanied their weekend FA Cup defeat to Watford, and off it, they are finally set to make a couple of much-needed transfer breakthroughs.

Full-back Antonio Barreca is set to complete a season-long loan from Monaco later today, but it is the arrival of Almiron that could really transform Newcastle’s fortunes in the second half of the season.

The Paraguay international has topped Rafael Benitez’s wanted list all month, but a series of discussions reached an impasse when the Newcastle hierarchy repeatedly refused to meet Atlanta United’s asking price.

That changed when Newcastle officials finally tabled an improved offer yesterday morning, and Almiron will complete a £20m switch to Tyneside provided he successfully completes a medical and finalises his personal terms later today.

The 24-year-old attacking midfielder will replace Michael Owen as Newcastle’s record signing, with the England international having cost £16m when he joined from Real Madrid in 2005.

“Before the game, I was told that we were progressing with some names,” said Benitez, who watched his Newcastle side provide his former employers, Liverpool, with a huge helping hand in their attempts to win the Premier League title. “Now, we have to see what will happen.

“We have to analyse everything, and if it is right, it will be good news for us. The main thing is that we sign what we need. It doesn’t matter about the price, we just have to be sure that we can sign some players who will help us to stay up. That is the main thing.”

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Almiron is due to arrive at Newcastle’s training ground this morning, and he should be joined by Barreca, who has agreed a season-long loan from Ligue 1.

An Italian defender, who joined Monaco from Torino last summer, Barreca will provide some much-needed competition on the left-hand side of the Magpies’ defence.

Newcastle are also hoping to sign Andreas Samaris on loan, but while Benfica had indicated they were willing to release the Greek midfielder, they named him in their starting line-up for last night’s Primeira Liga win over Boavista.

“I knew before the game that we were trying to do things, but I didn’t know how close we were,” added Benitez. “Now, I know we are closer, so hopefully we will have some good news tomorrow and that means we can have more competition in the squad. That will be positive for the rest of the season, for sure.”

Last night’s result was certainly positive, with Newcastle shrugging off the disappointment of conceding a first-minute goal to hit back in dramatic fashion in the second half.

Rondon levelled things as he drilled home a first-time finish shortly after the hour mark, and Ritchie held his nerve to claim the winner from the penalty spot after Fernandinho brought down Sean Longstaff in the box.

“We had a game plan, although the game plan was not to concede a goal in the first minute,” said Benitez. “But then the reaction of the players was really good. We said at half-time we had to stay in the game and keep going.

“We knew we would have our chances, so we just had to continue working as hard as we did. The fans appreciate that, so in the end, (the reaction) was not just because we won, it was the way that we won against a very good team.

“We were fighting for each other until the last minute. In the end, we were good enough to score two goals and lucky enough because they didn’t take a couple of chances when we gave the ball away in the first half. Overall, I thought we needed to win one of these games where we had been so close, and that was the one.”

Pep Guardiola admitted Manchester City’s defeat dealt a major blow to their hopes of retaining the Premier League title, but refused to throw in the towel despite Liverpool being able to open up a seven-point gap at the top of the table if they beat Leicester City tonight.

“It’s more difficult,” said Guardiola. “We have the chances to do it and we know we have to win games because their advantage is not huge so we have to continue.

“The most important thing is not to care about the table, we just have to play our game and do what we have to do. You can lose in football because it is so competitive, but in many details, we were not at our best today.”