Things appear to have hit a new block at St. James’ Park in the January transfer window. Newcastle United is hoping to complete a deal for Danish striker Nicolai Jorgensen. The club is set to go through with a move that will see the Magpies splash out a club-record fee for the striker.
Jorgensen has been impressive while playing for Feyenoord Rotterdam this season and is in hot form after scoring 8 goals in his last 10 games. The Dutch side valued their striker at £20 million and Newcastle had reportedly seen their initial bid for the forward rejected. They have now reportedly returned with a bigger number which is still not enough for Feyenoord. Newcastle’s second bid is reported to be in the range of £15 million.
The Danish striker who can also play as a winger has previously plied his trade in Germany for Bayer Leverkusen and in Sweden for Copenhagen. The 27-year old hitman has scored 32 goals in 61 games and would be an ideal fit for Benitez’s team given his strong hold-up play. Should he choose to come to Newcastle, he would be the second signing after Kenedy who was signed on loan from Chelsea recently.
Newcastle United’s return to the top flight of English football has not gone according to plan. The Magpies endured a mixed start to their campaign in England’s top league. Their latest slump has seen Newcastle slide down again. They now stand 15th on the table and have collected just 10 of their last 45 available points.
On the transfer front, things have been very jittery and unplanned. After a very impressive season in the Championships that saw Newcastle return to the Premier League, Benitez demanded more signings of Premier League standard to establish the club in England’s premier competition. However, with Newcastle unable to sell their existing crop of players, Newcastle has had to deal with a stagnant squad and that has frustrated Benitez. With the January transfer window now open, Benitez will look to go through with fresh transfer dealings to help his team improve.
The biggest problem at Tyneside, however, remains with the growing conflict between the owner and the club. Mike Ashley has been extremely strict with his budget handling and with the owner unable to sell the club to a new investor, such budget constraints are expected to continue. In light of such events, Benitez will know that he will not have a large fund to work with and will have to plan his new signings perfectly if he wishes to bolster his squad in every department.
