Atlanta United striker Josef Martinez is not interested in a January transfer to Newcastle United amid rumoured interest from St. James’ Park, according to AJC journalist Doug Roberson.
Martinez had been linked with a potential winter move to the Premier League and to follow in the footsteps of his former teammate Miguel Almiron by joining the Magpies in January, but is understood to be ‘very happy’ with life at his current MLS franchise.
The 26-year-old hopes to remain at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium for as long as he is wanted by the Five Stripes, whom he has represented 100 times in all competitions since joining from Serie A outfit Torino in 2017.
Martinez, alongside Almiron, lifted the MLS Cup in 2018 while striking a league-high 35 goals in 39 outings, and went on to hit 33 in 39 games over the 2019 season for a minute per goal hit rate of one every 105.2 minutes.
His title-clinching campaign also saw Atlanta award Martinez with a new contract worth $3million a year (£44,082-per-week), which keeps him tied to the Five Stripes until December 2023.
Breaking him from that deal would be expected to cost any interested side around $40m (£30.5m), though it now seems as if Newcastle will not be the outfit able to secure Martinez’s signature, even if owner Mike Ashley were to sanction Managing Director Lee Charnley spending as much, after the forward was tipped to stay away from St. James’ Park this month.
Should Newcastle still lodge a bid for Martinez?
Yes
No
Martinez could have been the free-scoring striker head coach Steve Bruce is longing for this month, having lost Yoshinori Muto, Andy Carroll, Dwight Gayle and now Joelinton to injuries.
The 51-cap Venezuelan has shown no issues in finding the back of the net in MLS action since leaving Europe for life across the pond, with 88 goals over his 100 appearances for Atlanta.
Okay, adapting to the Premier League from MLS has its difficulties – as Almiron showed on the back of his move – but Bruce is crying out for someone who can score as freely as Martinez, and the position of Almiron at St. James’ Park could easily make Martinez’s transition that little bit easier.
The pair connected for eight goals during Atlanta’s MLS Cup winning season in 2018, with each player assisting the other four times.
Almiron then moved to England and made ten Premier League appearances under Rafa Benitez, in which he would average 2.2 shots per 90 minutes along with 1.5 key balls, 0.8 successful dribbles and 0.8 accurate crosses, per WhoScored data.
He has since followed his efforts under Benitez with 1.7 shots per 90 minutes over 23 Premier League outings under Bruce, plus 0.6 key balls, 1.5 successful dribbles and 0.9 accurate crosses while recording his first top-flight assist and two goals in Black and White.
In other Newcastle United news, the club are reportedly ready to offer a £60k-p/w outcast a chance to escape his fringe status with a move to St. James’ Park.