Newcastle United could be one striker short for the forseeable future, with Aleksandar Mitrovic carried off against Birmingham City.
The Chronicle reports that Newcastle United boss Rafa Benitez says he doesn’t yet know whether striker Aleksandar Mitrovic could be set for a lengthy absence but insists that this doesn’t mean he will be targeting a replacement forward in January.
The Serbian suffered a nasty gash to his leg in the build up to Daryl Murphy’s early opener in The Magpies 1-1 FA Cup draw with Birmingham City at St Andrew’s, with reports suggesting that he could be set for a prolonged period on the sidelines.
However, Benitez says this will not change Newcastle’s plans in the January transfer window as reports continue to link the promotion-chasers with a central midfielder, particularly Fabian Delph or Tom Cleverley.
“I don’t know if [the injury to Mitrovic] could be long-term, for us it doesn’t change too much in terms of our decisions,” the Spaniard told The Chronicle.
“We’ll see how long. In terms of what we were thinking before, it’s the same situation.”
On the upside, former Ipswich Town striker Murphy’s long-awaited first goal for the club means he could be hitting his stride at the perfect time if Mitrovic is indeed ruled out for a long period.
Nonetheless, the experienced Republic of Ireland international has been out of favour for most of the season and, with Ayoze Perez struggling in front of goal, Newcastle could be even more reliant upon Dwight Gayle in the coming weeks.
Finally, Benitez appears to have brought an end to speculation linking The Magpies with Brentford’s Scott Hogan with the Shields Gazette reporting recently that they were unwilling to meet his £15 million valuation.
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