Newcastle's Rafa Benitez snaps up Jesus Gamez from Atletico

With the signing of Sime Vrsaljko now official, Atletico have begun cleaning out their ranks in preparation for his arrival. Jesus Gamez, who provided cover for Juanfran for the majority of his time at the Vicente Calderon, is reportedly in talks over a move to recently-relegated Newcastle as the purchase of Vrsaljko seems to have deemed him surplus to requirements.

Gamez always struggled to get on the field ever since leaving Malaga for Atletico in 2014, as he made only 24 apperances in his time at the club. Last season, the 31-year-old made just 7 starts. With fellow Spaniard Rafael Benitez in charge at Tyneside, this may be the move that Gamez needs to revitalize his career. Despite suffering the pain of relegation last year, Newcastle have been keen to prove their determination of ensuring they don't remain in England's second-tier division for long. They have already spent over £20million this summer and Gamez would arguably be their most experienced addition should the move go through.

For Atletico, it offers them the opportunity to free up extra space on the wage bill as well as recoup some of the money they've already spent in the transfer window. Vrsaljko and Nicolas Gaitan have already been added to a squad which finished runners-up in the Champions League for the second time in three years, with both players combining for over €40million. With Atleti also looking to strengthen the strikers' position, any current player which looks expendable should be shipped out.

Under-performers from last season, such as Luciano Vietto and Oliver Torres, will most likely follow Gamez out the door at some point over the next two months. Los Rojiblancos will be keen to clear as much space as possible for a new addition to the forwards line, with Diego Costa, Kevin Gameiro and Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang the latest names to be linked to the club.