Newcastle United are expected to approach Sheffield Wednesday imminently to discuss compensation for Steve Bruce, but who could the current Owls chief line up at the head of our attack next season?
That question has been doing the rounds on the R/NUFC Reddit page lately, as fans debate the strengths and weaknesses of Dwight Gayle and Yoshinori Muto, the two men who could be our only recognised strikers by the end of the week.
Salomon Rondon finished as our second-top goalscorer in the top-flight last season with eleven to his name, one behind now-Leicester City forward Ayoze Perez, but has returned to parent side West Bromwich Albion, and is reportedly set to reconnect with Rafa Benitez at Dalian Yifang.
Losing Rondon and Perez has taken away 23 of our 42 Premier League goals from the 2018/19 season, with Muto helping to the overall total with one in 17 games – only five of which were in the starting XI.
Gayle, on the other hand, excelled for most of the recent Championship season while on loan with West Brom as part of the deal which brought Rondon to St James’ Park, finding the back of the net 24 times in 40 games and assisting a further eight.
The London-born 28-year-old endured a lengthy goal drought between February and the end of March, though, as he fired blanks in six successive games and missed two fixtures through a suspension imposed by the sports court.
Muto and Gayle may be all Bruce, or whoever replaces Benitez, has on offer, however, as it is expected that Joselu – who scored twice in 16 Premier League games last season – will complete his move to Deportivo Alaves for around €2million (£1.7m) this week, providing he passes his obligatory medical at the La Liga side’s facilities.
The former Stoke City forward, now in the final year of his United contract, has been on the cusp of returning to Spain for much of the summer, but legal issues are thought to have held his transfer back, despite personal terms already being agreed.
Here’s how these Magpies supporters have answered the question ‘Muto or Gayle?’, with Joselu on the verge of exiting Newcastle and less than a month of the summer transfer window remaining…
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