Saudi Arabian side Al-Shabab look determined to sign a goalkeeper from Newcastle United this month - but after missing out on Martin Dubravka in recent days it appears Odysseas Vlachodimos has also turned down an approach from the Middle East outfit.

Fabrizio Romano reports the Greek stopper favours a stay in Europe with his Magpies future firmly up in the air. Newcastle, meanwhile, are hopeful of keeping the bulk of their first-team players this month but would seriously ponder any permanent offers for Vlachodimos providing they can recoup a good chunk of the reported £15m paid for the third-choice stopper.

The former Forest goalkeeper had the chance to depart on loan just weeks after arriving at St James' Park but remained on Tyneside to battle for first-team minutes. Since then, however, he has been restricted to just 45 minutes of competitive football in the Carabao Cup.

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Howe has five senior stoppers on the books and has fought tooth and nail to keep current No 1 Martin Dubravka at the club in recent weeks. With Nick Pope set to return from a knee injury in the near future, there is a slight chance Vlachodimos could depart should an attractive offer arrive for both player and club.

Dubravka had the chance to end his career with a lucrative pay packet in Saudi after also struggling for game time under Howe - yet after being thrust back into life as a first-choice stopper, Newcastle managed to persuade the Slovakian to stay put until the end of the season.

With Dubravka and Pope set to battle it out for a starting spot between now and May, Vlachodimos continues to be tasked with pushing his fellow keepers on the training pitch.

"He's been excellent behind the scenes. He's a really, lovely lad, a really nice person, he's got a really nice way about him, very smiley, happy," Howe said of Vlachodimos earlier this month before opting to stick with Dubravka for the FA Cup clash with Bromley.

"But you can see he's driven and he's a vastly experienced goalkeeper, so I think he's added a lot to the training group. He's been actively involved in all the training that we've done and he's become a really well liked member of the team, well liked member of the goalkeeping team, but also the first team. So he's been excellent with his conduct around the building."