Newcastle bid £12m for Wilfried Bony?

Newcastle United are reportedly in talks with Dutch side Vitesse Arnhem to sign Wilfried Bony after bidding £12m earlier this week.

Bony is the top scorer in Dutch football this season with 16 goals in 18 games and has caught the attention of scouts across Europe with his clinical displays.

The 24-year-old has been linked with Liverpool and West Ham United but Newcastle are the first club to begin negotiations with Vitesse, according to The Telegraph.

Manager Alan Pardew faces a race against time to secure the forward's signature with Bony currently on Africa Cup of Nations duty with the Ivory Coast.

The Magpies have been the busiest Premier League club in the January transfer window so far, buying five players including Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa, Moussa Sissoko and Mathieu Debuchy.