Newcastle United are in advanced talks to sign Republic of Ireland forward Leanne Kiernan from Liverpool, in a move that would strengthen the second-tier club's attack as they push for promotion from the WSL 2. The 27-year-old, who spent the second half of last season on loan at Nottingham Forest, still has over a year left on her Liverpool contract, meaning Newcastle would likely need to pay a transfer fee to secure her services.

Kiernan has scored 23 goals in 76 appearances during five years at Liverpool, and was the club's top scorer with 14 goals when they won the WSL 2 title in 2022. However, she has struggled for regular game time under manager Gareth Taylor, starting just once in the WSL last season before her loan move, and Liverpool have further strengthened their forward options this summer by signing Germany international Vivien Endemann from Wolfsburg. The move would be one of six additions in a busy transfer window for Newcastle, who have made 38 senior appearances for Ireland since her 2017 debut and previously played for West Ham and Shelbourne.