Newcastle United would have to pay £50m to sign a striker as good as Callum Wilson, claims pundit Paddy Kenny.
What’s the latest Newcastle United news?
The 31-year-old has reportedly (via The Athletic) signed a new two-year contract at St James’ Park with the option of a third should a number of criteria be met.
Wilson is now believed to have moved amongst Newcastle’s highest earners on the wage bill, with Luke Edwards recently reporting that Kieran Trippier led the way on that front on a deal worth around £100k-per-week.
Back in the team for Saturday’s win over Fulham, the former Bournemouth man was quickly amongst the goals once more. Wilson opened the scoring – his 23rd in 50 games for the club – and could even have had more, though missed a good chance early on at Craven Cottage.
What has been said about Wilson?
Speaking to Football Insider, Kenny said: “I’m sure further down the line they will look to replace him, no disrespect. For now, it’s a very clever move for him.
“In this market, you are looking at £50million to replace someone like Wilson who has a record of almost one every two games for Newcastle.”
Is Kenny right?
It’s certainly hard to argue against that.
Wilson offers a guarantee of goals. Clearly, there are plenty of fitness issues regarding his game but few can doubt his ability in front of goal. So often the one player who could decide games under Steve Bruce, eight of his 23 goals in black and white have directly led to wins.
Alexander Isak cost around £60m and offers potential going forward, but to sign the ready-made version would surely cost more than that. Indeed, both Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Ivan Toney were reportedly considered by Newcastle this summer but proved out of reach, such were their respective asking prices of well over £40m.
To have got Wilson for a reported £20m two years ago, it has to be seen as a bargain from Newcastle’s perspective, even with all of the injury problems in mind.
