Newcastle have struggled for goals from forwards this season, and a worrying report in the Shields Gazette claimed Steve Bruce is not expected to sign a new striker in January.
It comes amid speculation of Newcastle interest in Rangers’ Colombian goal-scorer Alfredo Morelos, with the player’s former Independiente manager urging him to stay in Scotland.
The Shields Gazette report said: “Morelos’ form has inevitably brought links to the top flight in England with Newcastle and the likes of Aston Villa and Crystal Palace thought to have watched the player in the last six months.”
There is no doubt Morelos is astute at finding the net, but he has also had knack for being show red cards, although his record this season suggests he has got his disciplinary act together.
He has played 12 SPFL games so far in the current campaign, and picked up just one yellow card. That is quite the contrast compared to last season, where he had received four yellow cards and one red card from his first 12 appearances.
In total last season, across all competitions, Morelos was sent off five times and picked up 16 yellow cards. This season, he has so far played 26 games domestically and in Europe for Rangers, and been booked just five times.
If he is now proving he can be trusted on the pitch more, and will not spend a large portion of the season suspended, he may well be attracting more attention from Premier League sides.
If Newcastle do not sign a striker in January, it could prove to be an ill-judged decision on Bruce’s part.
Newcastle must find goals from forwards
Newcastle currently have Joelinton, Andy Carroll, Dwight Gayle and Yoshinori Muto, with only two goals this season between the four of them.
Muto does not seem up to playing in the Premier League, and must go down as one of Rafa Benitez’s poor signings. While Gayle is thought to be in demand at West Brom.
Selling the two of those in January, and signing a quality replacement, would be the best outcome for the players, and the football club.
Newcastle simply cannot afford to rely on goals from their defenders week after week, and they will eventually dry up. So without goals from the forwards, it is hard to see where they will score enough to keep out of trouble.
Whether Morelos would be the answer to those problems, remains to be seen, but to contemplate not adding anyone to the attacking ranks would be a big risk, but more likely, a bigger mistake.
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