NEWCASTLE UNITED are set to face last-minute competition from Chelsea as they look to kickstart their January overhaul with the signing of Kieran Trippier.

The Magpies submitted a formal bid for Trippier with Atletico Madrid officials over the weekend, but the indications from Spain are that the England international’s current employers are holding out for a better offer.

Newcastle’s hierarchy are ready to return to the negotiating table for further discussions, but their failure to strike an immediate deal has created an opportunity for other clubs to make offers of their own.

Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel has seen his full-back ranks decimated in recent weeks, and is understood to be pushing his club’s recruitment team to make a last-gasp offer for Trippier.

With Ben Chilwell having been ruled out for the season with an anterior cruciate ligament injury and Reece James set to be sidelined for around two months after tearing his hamstring, Tuchel desperately needs to recruit a defensive reinforcement.

Trippier’s ability to play on either flank, as evidenced by his performances for England at last summer’s European Championships, makes him an especially appealing option, and Tuchel is hoping the lure of Champions League football and the possibility of challenging for the title in the second half of the season will persuade the 31-year-old to snub St James’ Park in order to move to Stamford Bridge.

Newcastle officials have spent a large amount of time paving the way for Trippier’s signing, and are hopeful their discussions have reached an advanced enough stage to make it difficult for Chelsea to hijack their move.

Despite the Magpies’ position in the Premier League’s bottom three, Trippier is known to be excited at the prospect of returning to England with Newcastle. While he played for Tottenham prior to moving to Atletico, he was born in Bury and his roots remain in the North-West. As a result, he has always been keen to return to the North.

Whether interest from Chelsea would change that remains to be seen, but Newcastle director Amanda Staveley is understandably keen to push through a deal as quickly as possibly. Staveley has always been keen to kick off Newcastle’s January spending with a ‘statement signing’, and Trippier’s position as an established England international makes him the ideal candidate to be first through the door.

Atletico boss Diego Simeone has shuffled Trippier down his defensive pecking order this season, and appears resigned to the likelihood of the full-back leaving this month.

“We have always had to live with these situations, important and very good players within the team who have possibilities of leaving,” said Simeone. “Then it will depend on what the footballer himself wants.

“He is an important player for our team, but we coaches can’t do too much in terms of players’ decisions. We can only tell Trippier how important he is for the team.”

Staveley and her fellow directors have also held talks with Lille over a possible £30m move for Dutch centre-half Sven Botman.

Botman, a Netherlands Under-21 international, had previously stated he would only leave Lille for Champions League football, but sources in France suggest he is ready to change his position in order to sign a lucrative long-term deal with Newcastle.

That deal would contain a clause enabling him to move on again in the summer if the Magpies were to be relegated, but Lille are yet to agree to reach an agreement that would result in them sanctioning Botman’s departure. Again, further talks are planned this week.

Newcastle were linked with a potential move for out-of-favour Arsenal forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang over the weekend, but at this stage, any interest in the Gabon international has not progressed to a point where formal talks with the Gunners would commence.

Aubameyang has not played for Arsenal since he was disciplined for returning late from a family visit to France at the start of December, and Mikel Arteta is planning for life without the striker.

However, while Newcastle’s need for a new striker increased significantly when Callum Wilson suffered a calf injury against Manchester United, the club’s chief priority for this month’s window remains strengthening a defence that has the joint-worst record for conceding goals in the Premier League.