If Newcastle don’t want Slimani should West Ham swoop in?

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If Newcastle United pass on the Leicester City loanee, West Ham United should chance their hand.

Newcastle United will not make a move to sign Islam Slimani on a permanent basis after cutting his loan from Leicester City short, reports the Chronicle.

Manager Rafa Benitez revealed that with Slimani unable to play again this season after being given a retrospective three-match ban for kicking Craig Dawson during a 1-0 defeat to West Bromwich Albion in the Premier League, the striker was offered the chance to go back to the King Power Stadium early and accepted.

With the 29-year-old arriving at St James’ Park already injured on deadline day in the January transfer window, it was always going to be tough to impress and the Algeria international returns to the Foxes having made four appearances and scoring no goals.

Leicester are open to the sale of Slimani, but want at least £20m for a forward who remains their club record signing after joining from Sporting Lisbon in the summer of 2016 for £29m (BBC); yet Newcastle have made it clear they’re not interested.

What next?

This could give West Ham United the opportunity to finally complete the signing of someone they came close to landing themselves during the last window.

As the Mirror revealed at the time, Slimani’s club rejected an approach from the Hammers because of what their vice-chair Karren Brady had written in her Sun column when Claudio Ranieri was sacked in 2017.

Whether they will have softened their stance and are now willing to do business with West Ham is unknown, as is if the East London outfit are still interested in an attacker who has since struggled on Tyneside.

Yet if that interest does remain then their chances of landing Slimani have just been made a whole lot more likely.