Newcastle United want Lucas Leiva as part of Georginio Wijnaldum deal

Newcastle United have reportedly told Liverpool to include midfielder Lucas Leiva in any bid for Georginio Wijnaldum.

The 29-year-old is the longest-serving player at Anfield having arrived at the club in 2007, when current Magpies boss Rafael Benitez was in charge at Liverpool.

The Telegraph reports that Benitez is keen on a reunion with the Brazilian, although the player himself is reluctant to drop down into the Championship.

However, the report goes on to state that Benitez would consider handing Lucas the captaincy in order to entice him down into the second tier of English football.

Jurgen Klopp is keen to trim his squad this summer, and could use Lucas as a makeweight in his attempts to sign Wijnaldum, who is expected to leave St James' Park following their relegation last season.

The two clubs are still wrangling over a fee for Wijnaldum, with Newcastle holding out for a bid of £27m while Liverpool value the Dutch international closer to the £20m mark.