Newcastle United were reportedly keen to sell Aleksandar Mitrovic but, as it stands, the club have failed to secure a replacement.
There’s hardly been a shortage of strikers linked with Newcastle United this summer, from Andre Gray to Bas Dost, Islam Slimani to Jonathan Cafu. As it stands, however, Newcastle have only made four permanent signings this summer – and none of them have arrived to reinforce the frontline.
Consequently, Dwight Gayle remains the club’s undisputed first-choice centre-forward with just three weeks to go before Newcastle kick off the new Premier League season against Tottenham Hotspur.
Gayle is far from proven in the Premier League
Gayle may have netted an impressive 23 goals in 32 games to spearhead Newcastle’s charge to promotion last season but his record in the top flight leaves plenty of room for improvement. Across three seasons at Crystal Palace, the 27-year-old hit the net just 15 times though most of his appearances came in the form of substitute cameos.
Yet, with no new strikers arriving at Newcastle this summer, and 34-year-old Daryl Murphy departing for Nottingham Forest after just one season, you wonder what this means for Aleksandar Mitrovic.
The firebrand Serb has clearly failed to win over manager Rafael Benitez, starting just six Championship games all season and missing chances left right and centre when handed a rare opportunity to shine.
Lyon wanted Olivier Giroud but Mitrovic is a similar type of forward
However, though Benitez admitted a need to trim down a bloated squad, it would make little sense for Mitrovic to be sold with no realistic replacement lined up as of yet.
Therefore, with The Magpies finding it difficult to secure their top targets, you wonder whether Mitrovic could be handed a reprieve. If he is still at the club by late August, and has made a positive start to the new season, don’t rule out Benitez handing the 22-year-old a second chance.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
