Newcastle United tipped to green light striker transfer twist – but only on one condition
Newcastle United’s Striker Saga: Rejections, Dilemmas, and Deadline Day Drama
Newcastle United’s desperate hunt for a striker has been one of the defining stories of this summer’s transfer window – and the twists don’t look like stopping anytime soon.
For Eddie Howe and his recruitment team, it has been a summer of frustration, one where ambition has been met time and again with rejection. The mission is simple on paper: find a centre-forward capable of leading the line for a club competing in Europe and battling in the upper reaches of the Premier League. In reality, though, the search has been anything but straightforward.
The Isak and Wilson Headache
The situation has been further complicated by the storm brewing around Alexander Isak. Once seen as the crown jewel of Newcastle’s attack, the Swedish striker has grown increasingly unsettled, his unhappiness spilling over into public view. Training away from the main group at Benton, doing shooting drills and running laps on his own, Isak’s reintegration into the squad is proving far trickier than the club had hoped.
Meanwhile, Callum Wilson, once the reliable alternative, has already walked out of the St. James’ Park door. His move to West Ham United on a free transfer left Newcastle without their most consistent finisher, piling pressure on the recruitment team to act quickly. Yet, despite months of planning and endless negotiations, no replacement has been secured.
A Summer of Missed Opportunities
The list of near-misses has grown longer by the week. Newcastle have explored moves for Liam Delap, João Pedro, Hugo Ekitike, and Benjamin Šeško, among others, but every pursuit has ended in disappointment. Some targets opted for rival clubs, others were deemed too expensive, while a few simply slipped away due to indecision at board level.
This revolving door of rejections has left Howe with no choice but to improvise. Against Aston Villa on the opening day, he deployed Anthony Gordon as a makeshift striker. To his credit, Gordon worked hard and showed flashes of quality, but Newcastle’s attack looked toothless without a genuine focal point. The worry now is that the same bluntness will be exposed again in upcoming fixtures against Liverpool and Leeds United.
The Wissa Question
Brentford’s Yoane Wissa has been identified as a serious option, though the deal remains fraught with complications. The Bees have consistently shifted their valuation, with the latest price tag hovering around an eye-watering £50 million. That fee, bordering on prohibitive, has not deterred Newcastle entirely, but it has forced them to keep alternative names on the table.
Chelsea’s Nicolas Jackson has also been floated as a possibility, but much like Wissa, his availability depends on circumstances beyond Newcastle’s control. What’s clear is that Howe badly needs a forward of that profile – someone with pace, movement, and a proven eye for goal – to restore balance to his side.
The Osula Dilemma
Lurking beneath the headline acts of this saga is William Osula, the 22-year-old Danish forward who remains the only natural striker on Newcastle’s books at present. Despite that fact, Howe has shown little faith in him, consistently overlooking the youngster for opportunities in big matches.
Osula’s situation raises uncomfortable questions: if he cannot be trusted to feature now, when the squad is crying out for a striker, then will he ever be considered good enough to play in the Premier League?
Rumours are beginning to swirl that a late-window departure could be on the cards. According to reports from Sky Sports Germany, Bayer Leverkusen are keeping close tabs on him, and a Bundesliga move remains a possibility if Newcastle sign another striker before deadline day. The club, however, are wary of leaving themselves too short up front, meaning Osula’s future is directly tied to whether Howe gets his long-awaited reinforcement.
What Happens Next?
As the final week of the transfer window ticks away, Newcastle’s striker conundrum remains unsolved. A new arrival would ease the pressure on Howe and potentially reset the mood around Isak, but without one, the Magpies risk entering a crucial stretch of the season under-equipped and unbalanced.
For now, the fans wait anxiously, hoping that the club can finally deliver the kind of clinical frontman capable of turning dominance into goals. Because as things stand, Newcastle United look like a team with ambition but without the firepower to match it.