At just 22 years of age, Aleksandar Mitrovic is already a veteran of 5 years in top flight football & has been setting Tyneside alight with his performances on the pitch as well as t-shirt sales off it. The Serbian international have had been “a criminal or a kick boxer” if not a footballer, has been delivering on the international stage as well with the headed goal that held Wales to a 1 – 1 draw in the Euro qualifiers last month coming to mind.
That certainly seems to have caught the attention of the Premier League’s Welsh representatives Swansea who are looking to address their current woes with a bid in the range of £15m to bring him to the club. While Newcastle & the player himself are unlikely to push for the deal, given their relative positions in their respective leagues, one can never tell in the world of football.
While he has only 5 goals to his name this season, far behind the 17 that summer signing Dwight Gayle has racked up, it is certain that Newcastle will miss his pace & power up front that powered their run till the quarters of the EFL cup. If he were to leave, here are three replacements that might fill his shoes:
Alexandre Lacazette
It’s certainly not going to be an easy task to convince Lyon’s fourth highest scorer of all time & well settled French international to make a move to England, but as his 11 goals in 12 Ligue 1 appearances this season demonstrate it would be worth every bit of the effort. Rafael Benitez will have a hopeful eye on playing in the Premier League next season, and with Lyon out of the Champions League, he might just be able to convince Lacazette or perhaps his agent to get a move sanctioned.
He will no doubt expect to start every game, and that could lead to an interesting situation with Gayle’s current form making him undroppable.
Jordan Rhodes
A player who once held the record for being English football’s most expensive player outside the top flight when he joined Blackburn Rovers for £8,000,000, Rhodes will be feeling criminally underused at Middlesbrough where he’s just made 6 appearances this season. His 93 goals in the EFL championship have come at the rate of nearly one every two games & at 26 years of age, he still has plenty left to give.
An experienced, cool head might make the difference between Newcastle being promoted directly or going through the jitters of the play-offs & Rhodes would be the perfect candidate.
Memphis Depay
Having signed for Manchester United after his breakthrough season in the Eredivisie where he scored 22 goals in 30 league appearances, Memphis has only scored 2 in English league football in a total of 33 appearances of which only 4 have come this season. For a player who derives as much from confidence, faith & rhythm as he does, a short spell away from the glare of the Premier league at championship title contenders could do a world of good.
With Dutch teammates hinting at a move away from Manchester for the young talent, it might be up to Newcastle to pry him away from Goodison & into their arms.
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