Eddie Howe makes Newcastle United transfer admission supporters won't like - opinion
Newcastle United still want to make at least one more signing before the transfer window closes.
Eddie Howe admits it is “equally possible” that Newcastle United do not sign a striker before the transfer window closes on September 1.
Although there is the constant noise surrounding Alexander Isak’s future, Howe has made it clear on more than one occasion that the sole focus is to find a replacement for Callum Wilson.
The Magpies lost Wilson to West Ham United on a free transfer and their search to bring in another striker has so far fallen flat, having suffered a number of rejections.
Newcastle tabled bids for Joao Pedro, Hugo Ekitike and Benjamin Sesko, and held talks with the representatives of Liam Delap, but the quartet have opted for moves to Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United, respectively.
Yoane Wissa and Jorgen Strand Larsen linked with Newcastle United
For the past month or so, United have been hopeful of signing Yoane Wissa from Brentford and were led to believe the £42.5m club-record signing of Dango Ouattara from AFC Bournemouth last weekend would green-light Wissa’s exit.
However, the Bees continue to stand firm, with manager Keith Andrews insisting after Sunday’s defeat at Nottingham Forest that Ouattara was regarded as a replacement for Bryan Mbeumo, who joined Manchester United.
Earlier this week, the West London outfit rejected a £35m plus £5m add-ons bid from Newcastle. The word is that Brentford want between £50m to £60m for Wissa, who is desperate to make the move.
Sources in the Midlands this week have also claimed Newcastle hold a strong interest in Wolverhampton Wanderers striker Jorgen Strand but it could take around £60m to entice a sale.
‘Equally possible’ - Eddie Howe makes NUFC striker transfer admission
With just 10 days until the window closes and the striker market a very small pool, NewcastleWorld asked Howe if there is a scenario where United don’t make any further signings.
And the Newcastle boss admitted there is, though neither he nor the supporters will hope that is the case.
He replied: “Yes, of course. I mean, that's equally possible. I think for us, we are still actively in the market. But I think I say all the time that any transfer has to be right. And for a number of reasons, and this is the sort of with PSR, you're always trying to manage that situation.
“So, if we make a signing that goes against some of the long-term planning, we can put ourselves in a very difficult position again very, very quickly. So, we have to be careful with what we do.
“Yes, we have a need, but we also can't allow ourselves to go into a difficult moment where we're forced to selling a player, as we did with Elliot Anderson and Yankuba Minteh, So, we're always aware of that. And we're sort of at that moment where we have to be careful.”