Newcastle United appears to have secured its long-awaited new goalkeeper after making a decisive move for SC Braga’s Lukas Hornicek.
The Magpies have spent much of the summer searching for Nick Pope’s long-term successor, and after missing out on other targets, the club now looks set to land the Czech international ahead of the new season after he emerged as a potential transfer candidate just a few days ago.
On Friday, The Athletic’s David Ornstein reported Newcastle had agreed to pay Hornicek’s €30
million (£25.7 million) release clause, with only the payment structure still being finalized between clubs.
“The fee for Hornicek is €30million (£25.7m), the value of his release clause, and Newcastle are in the process of negotiating the payment terms with the Portuguese club as a deal for the 24-year-old advances towards a conclusion,” Ornstein reported.
Ornstein confirmed that signing a new goalkeeper had been one of Newcastle’s top priorities after opting against making Aaron Ramsdale’s loan move permanent and missing out on James Trafford, who instead joined Leeds United.
Hornicek made 88 senior appearances for Braga after joining the Portuguese club in 2019 for a meager €900k and recently earned his first senior cap for the Czech Republic before being included in the country’s World Cup squad.
The Daily Mail’s Simon Jones echoed Ornstein’s report, confirming Newcastle activated the goalkeeper’s release clause, with the transfer expected to be completed in the coming hours or days at the latest.
“Newcastle have an agreement in principle with Sporting Braga for goalkeeper Lukas Hornicek,” Jones wrote. “Hornicek has been given permission to travel for a medical as the two clubs tie up details, and he will become Newcastle’s fifth signing of the summer, though two are goalkeepers.”
Once the transfer is finalized, Hornicek would become the first signing of the Matthias Jaissle era after the German coach agreed to replace Eddie Howe.
The move would also signal the beginning of a changing of the guard between the posts, with Newcastle moving on from Pope after his inconsistent 2025-26 campaign and a transfer out of Tyneside looming.
