Hopefully Newcastle had an eye on Eddie Nketiah last night.
The Arsenal striker gave a timely reminder of his goalscoring prowess ahead of the January transfer window with a Carabao Cup hat-trick.
The 22-year-old put Sunderland to the sword to send the Gunners through to the Carabao Cup semi-finals after a 5-1 win against the League One side.
Nketiah’s trio of strikes took his tally for the season to five, which is rather impressive considering he is yet to be given a Premier League start this campaign.
All of Nketiah’s goals have come via the Carabao Cup this season and he has only been given 38 minutes of Premier League action, which have come via three substitute appearances.
With his contract expiring at the end of the season, the all-time England under-21 top goalscorer is unlikely to sign a new deal with the Gunners due to his wish to play regular first team football.
Speaking to Sky Sports after last night’s Carabao Cup win, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta reaffirmed his desire for Nketiah to stay at the Emirates.
Talking about Nketiah’s performance and future, the Spaniard said: “Eddie does what he does in training every day, he put the ball in the net.
“I think I’ve been very consistent with what I think about him, how much we like him and his contribution for us every time he plays is top.
“I want [him to stay], but he just wants more minutes. It’s difficult to go against that, but as a club and personally I really want him to stay here.
“That’s what we are trying to do, he’s our player and a really important part of the squad.”
Newcastle have to take advantage of Nketiah contract situation
The January transfer window is going to be crucial in boosting Eddie Howe’s prospects of beating the drop.
The 44-year-old is going to need quality reinforcements all over the pitch. As well as tightening up the league’s leakiest defence, the former Bournemouth manager will want additional firepower added to his side.
With Newcastle’s new-found wealth, PIF should test Arsenal’s resolve regarding Nketiah in January and look to convince the Gunners to cash in on the youngster, instead of losing him on a free.
However, following Arteta’s decision to strip Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of the club’s captaincy and the 32-year-old’s likely involvement in the African Cup of Nations, Arsenal may be willing to risk losing Nketiah for nothing in order for them to have sufficient cover upfront.
One man who would no doubt love to be reunited with his former teammate is Newcastle midfielder Joe Willock. The former Arsenal man reacted on social media to Nketiah’s impressive goalscoring clinic.
The £25m (Sky Sports) summer signing has struggled to replicate his loan form, but maybe the addition of his good friend could help reignite Willock.
With Newcastle practically needing to average a win from every other remaining game to give us a chance of survival, the addition of Nketiah would give Howe the option of playing two predatory strikers upfront, with Callum Wilson currently leading the line.
Arsenal are bound to receive several enquiries for Nketiah in January and Newcastle simply have to be one of them.
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