Burnley Stopper Nick Pope Emerges as Target for Newcastle United After Impressive Outings

Newcastle United are understood to have taken up an interest in signing Burnley goalkeeper -and surprise star of the Premier League season - Nick Pope in the summer.

According to The Sun, the stopper could consider leaving the Clarets at the end of the season if he loses his spot between the sticks to Tom Heaton, who is soon to return from injury.

Nigel Roddis/GettyImages

Burnley ideally want to keep both keepers on the books, but the report claims that they will have little say over Pope's future, if they cannot guarantee him regular first-team football.

It is likely that Heaton will reclaim his place in the starting lineup, given his form prior to suffering a shoulder injury. Yet he may face a challenge usurping Pope, who has stepped up to perform quite brilliantly in his stead.

Newcastle also have the option of signing the on-loan Martin Dubravka permanently in the summer for £3.5m. The 29-year-old Slovakian has only made one appearance for the Magpies, but what an outing it was, as his heroics helped them topple Premier League giants Manchester United, specifically when he made a remarkable save against Anthony Martial.

“It was an amazing feeling for me, because we won against a very strong team,” he said after the match. “I’m very happy that we won as a team. We worked hard in training. We tried to do our best.

“It was very important for me. When you’re in a new club and trying to do your best and show people that you deserve to be here, it’s very important (to make a save like that).