Arsenal to battle Newcastle for Bundesliga midfield star wanted by Liverpool: report

Arsenal and Newcastle are reportedly keeping tabs on Borussia Dortmund and Germany attacking midfielder Julian Brandt.

The 27-year-old – who scored in Dortmund's 2-0 home Champions League win over Newcastle on Tuesday night – has previously been a target for Liverpool.

Brandt joined BVB from fellow Bundesliga outfit Bayer Leverkusen for around £22m in 2019; he has made almost 200 appearances for the Black and Yellows.

The former Wolfsburg youngster signed a contract extension until 2026 in April this year, but that doesn't appear to have deterred the likes of Arsenal and Newcastle from weighing up a move.

According to the Mirror, both the Gunners and Magpies are keen on Brandt – who has been capped 45 times by Germany, featuring at the 2018 World Cup.

But the two clubs could miss out if Liverpool still hold an interest – especially given the player's past comments about the Reds.

In an interview with The Athletic back in July, Brandt even admitted that he could have  moved to Anfield in 2017 – had his circumstances been different.

The 2016 Olympic silver medallist said: “I had that chance to take that next step to join Liverpool, but the time wasn't right for me.

“I was aware that they were also looking at Mo Salah at the time. It's a shame because I would have loved to play for Kloppo [Jurgen Klopp].”

Currently valued at €40m (roughly £35m) by Transfermarkt, Brandt arrived at Dortmund just under two years after Klopp had left – a matter of months before his appointment as Reds manager.