Eddie Howe insists there will be no late loan exit for William Osula, despite interest emerging in the forward in recent weeks.

After just eight league appearances this term for the backup striker - with just 41 minutes played in total - loan enquiries have been made for the 21-year-old, with Austrian side Sturm Graz said to be keen on Newcastle United's summer signing.

However, with Callum Wilson still not back to full fitness and Howe's attacking options depleted after Miguel Almiron's exit, the Magpies chief wants to keep Osula at the club to play backup to Alexander Isak.

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“I see that balance very firmly at the moment that he needs to be with us, he needs the training, he needs the understanding that we need to give him,” Howe told reporters on Friday morning. “He is a multi-talented player, he has played wide before and that’s an option we could look at.

“Looking at him as a striker, he’s competing with Alex (Isak), which you wouldn’t necessarily want, but he is also working with two of the best strikers you could want. (He’s) very much here at the moment.”

Newcastle are down to the bare bones in attack, with just four fit, senior attackers in Howe's ranks at present. Osula is likely to be the only member of the quartet benched this weekend, waiting for his opportunity against Fulham from the sidelines.

The hope is that the youngster, signed as a future star, can revert to a third-choice centre-forward upon Wilson's imminent return, with Newcastle rolling the dice by not replacing Almiron upon his Atlanta United move.

Howe said on the matter: "I'm trying to make the best of the situation, so we'll look at solutions and players in different positions if we need to. That's my job to try and find a solution if that happens."