It seems highly likely that Newcastle United will sign a new striker this summer.
The club’s new owners have already spent £25million on a forward. Chris Wood arrived in January from Burnley, coming in as a replacement for the injured Callum Wilson.
Wood has performed well and led the line brilliantly, acting as a focal point and bringing others into the game. However, the goals haven’t flowed. The 30-year-old has scored just once for his new club, finding the net in the 2-1 win over Southampton.
The Magpies have missed Wilson – a player who has struggled with fitness since his arrival at St James’ Park.
Therefore, it’s no surprise to see plenty of forwards linked with a move to Newcastle. Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Patrik Schick and Darwin Nunez have all been mentioned.
New striker is ‘utmost priority’ for Newcastle
Newcastle are looking to strengthen all over the pitch this summer. However, the Athletic state that a ‘quality’ striker is the club’s ‘utmost priority’.
They add that the Magpies are expected to spend the majority of their budget on this. At this moment in time, it’s unclear what the budget will be. Various figures have been reported by different outlets – in truth, we probably won’t know until the window closes.
But to sign a quality striker we’re going to have to pay big money. A goalscorer is worth his weight in gold, and that’s what Newcastle want to add this summer.
To sign any one of Calvert-Lewin, Schick or Nunez, it will likely take a club record fee.
That puts a lot of pressure on the Toon recruitment staff. They need to make sure they land the right striker.
Will he succeed the Premier League? Does he suit the way Eddie Howe wants to play? Is he the right kind of character for the squad? These are the questions that must be answered when deciding which ‘quality’ striker to bring to St James’ Park.
Of course, if it doesn’t work out we can always convert him into a midfielder like our last forward flop…