Barcelona beaten to the signing of 18-year-old Spanish prodigy by Newcastle United

Barcelona are always alert to the young and promising talents coming through not only Spain but across the globe.

One such player who had caught the attention of the Catalan heavyweights was Malaga’s teenage wonderkid Antonio Cordero, also known as ‘Antonito’.

A product of Malaga’s academy, the 18-year-old forward has excelled this season, bagging five goals and six assists from 33 senior appearances, catching the attention of several top clubs, including Barça and Real Madrid.

Newcastle beat Barcelona to Antonito signing

However, as revealed by transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, Newcastle United have beaten both Barcelona and Real Madrid to the capture of Antonio Cordero.

Indeed, the Magpies have completed the deal to secure the services of the 18-year-old prodigy from Malaga and an announcement of his signing is expected to follow soon.

Though both Barça and Madrid had been following the Malaga winger closely, Cordero has opted for the Premier League.

What makes the move more surprising is that Cordero’s agent, Pini Zahavi, has close ties to Barcelona and president Joan Laporta. Zahavi also represents Barça manager Hansi Flick, whom the club are hoping to renew soon.

Despite that connection, the Premier League giants have won the race for the Spanish U-19 international.

A missed opportunity for Barcelona

Barcelona had already shown interest last summer, but backed out when Malaga set a €3 million price tag.

A renewed attempt in the January window also failed, despite the Catalans offering around €2 million to get ahead of the competition.

Meanwhile, Malaga tried to renew Cordero’s contract by offering one of the highest wages in their squad, but the player, whose contract expires in June, was already set on leaving and will now sign for Newcastle United.