NUFC ace Obafemi Martins chased by Besiktas

Jun 21 2009 by Neil Farrington, Sunday Sun

NEWCASTLE striker Obafemi Martins is being chased by Besiktas.

The Turkish champions are urgently seeking extra firepower to boost their challenge on two fronts next season.

Besiktas are determined to make an impact in the Champions League for the first time, and see Martins as a potential attacking spearhead.

Although he has insisted he is happy to stay at St James’s Park, newly- relegated Newcastle will be receptive to any serious bid for Martins as they bid to slash their wage bill.

And Besiktas would be able to offer the 24-year-old a more attractive salary than the middling Serie A clubs considering offering him a return to Italy.

Besiktas are a club on the up, having just won the Turkish league and cup double.

They are also eyeing Tottenham’s target man Roman Pavlychenko and Everton’s Louis Saha.

But Martins is Besiktas’ favoured target, particularly as Istanbul rivals Fenerbahce are also on the Nigerian’s tail.

Meanwhile, even if Martins is sold, Mike Ashley’s hopes of achieving his £100 million asking price for Newcastle are set to be scuppered by the club’s crippling wage bill.

Decisive movement on a Toon takeover is expected this week, with interested parties – including former United chairman Freddy Shepherd – set to show their hand.

But Newcastle’s increasingly obvious struggle to offload some of their highest-earning so-called stars will act as a serious deterrent to any bidder from matching Ashley’s valuation.

A string of senior players – including Damien Duff, Joey Barton, Kevin Nolan and Alan Smith – have committed their future to United despite relegation to the Championship.

But if they do remain on board, hopes of slashing Newcastle’s payroll from its current £74m to beneath next season’s projected turnover of around £50m will be dashed.

The departures of Michael Owen and Mark Viduka will save United in the region of £9m a year, but nowhere near enough to offset the cost of relegation.

Having had time to scrutinise Newcastle’s books, interested parties are expected to test the water this week with speculative bids of well under £100m.