Replying to a question on Twitter, the Daily Mail’s Craig Hope hinted that he ‘wouldn’t be surprised’ if Newcastle United were forced into shopping in the loan market for potential additions late on in the January transfer window in order to strengthen.
The feeling is that nothing is imminent at all. I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s deadline day loans NUFC are dealing in come the end of the month.
— Craig Hope (@CraigHope_DM) January 10, 2020
Indeed, despite strong links with moves for players such as Ademola Lookman, Hope suggested that were nothing imminent at all as the Magpies presumably look to strengthen their attack. The likes of Olivier Giroud and Emmanuel Dennis have also been touted as targets amid the collective goal-scoring struggles so far this season, with Joelinton, Allan Saint-Maximin and Miguel Almiron combining for just three in the Premier League thus far.
Where does this leave Newcastle?
In a frustratingly familiar situation.
Last year, the aforementioned Almiron arrived late on in the window, while during the campaign before, striker Islam Slimani was loaned in on January 31st. Prior to that, the Toon Army moved late to bring Seydou Doumbia on loan in February 2016 and it’s fair to say the latter two players did not impress.
Slimani only featured in four games during his short stint on Tyneside without scoring and Doumbia only played in three, during which he failed to find the net. Given their lack of impact, that would suggest that loaning in strikers in a rush as the window is about to close perhaps isn’t the best idea when it comes to Newcastle United. In fact, as pointed out by Jack Pitt-Brooke on the Athletic recently, more than half of the marksmen signed in the January window fail to score for their clubs, so there does appear to be flawed logic behind the scenes at St. James’ Park once again.
Verdict
With this in mind, Newcastle clearly aren’t learning from their past mistakes. Leaving business late in the window brings its own risks in terms of being able to get potentially deals done obviously and they themselves have been on the receiving end of duds in that regard in recent memory.
Do you think Newcastle will sign any strikers this month? Join the discussion by commenting below…
