The exciting 'dream signing' Newcastle United can pull off as fight begins for January talks
Newcastle United still admire Lille star Jonathan David but will need to qualify for the Champions League and pay a hefty agent fee to land the Canada international next summer.
The Magpies also have the tough task of fending off some of the likes of Arsenal, Napoli, Chelsea, Liverpool and Barcelona for David's services. The 24-year-old star impressed in the Champions League this week when bagging twice against Atletico Madrid in midweek in a 3-1 win for Lille and those around the striker have indicated that's where he wants to be plying his trade next term too.
Lille currently have their hands on a play-off spot in the 36-team division but David is yet to agree to a new deal with the Ligue 1 club and will leave next summer. With 12 goals in 18 matches he is playing his way into contention for a big summer move and is looking for a weekly wage increase at his next club with clubs able to talk to him from January for a pre-arranged deal.
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Sources close to David's agent have suggested that could be around £120,000 per week but given the lack of transfer fee that could work out excellent value if Newcastle could pull it off. With Callum Wilson's future uncertain and Newcastle in dire need of a new striker to support Alexander Isak, David would be the dream signing for many Newcastle fans.
The sticking point may prove the bumper agent demands which could see his representative Nikos Mavromaras net a huge seven-figure fee. For all that, landing the star that has already cracked in 130 career goals at senior level could be deemed a bargain still.
But a real show of ambition will be needed by Newcastle to land the Canada international given the fact the cream of Europe are trailing him from the stands.
Eddie Howe admits disharmony in the Newcastle camp but must now try to fix it
There was a candid moment in Eddie Howe's Press conference on Friday when he opened up on the lack of harmony within the camp during the summer.
Without delving into the reasons specifically, Howe was more than likely to be referring to a string of episodes that made for a rocky few months. There's plenty to choose from starting with director, co-owner and ally Amanda Staveley's surprise exit from the board, the teething problems between Howe and sporting director Paul Mitchell, the PSR debacle that resulted in Elliot Anderson and Yankuba Minteh being sold, failure to sign Marc Guehi and a right winger and the fact that the Magpies did not qualify for Europe last May.
The head coach has also had to pick up the pieces for the players that felt they were up for auction but ended up staying, such as Anthony Gordon.
Howe said: "It was a difficult summer for lots of reasons, a catalogue of things, not just one. It’s very easy to say a player should just forget about things and focus on their football. But when you have multiple players affected by different things it becomes harder. The general feel of the squad I think at the start of the season was different to how it has been in previous years.
"My job is to get the focus and the harmony absolutely back to where it should be but I think it's taken us longer than we initially hoped."
It's been a good week for the Miley family
It's easy to forget that Jamie Miley is still just 20 and has a genuine chance of becoming a first-team star like his younger brother Lewis.
Eighteen-year-old Lewis returned to the Newcastle squad for the clash against Brighton & Hove Albion after overcoming a foot injury suffered in the summer during an off season running incident. Jamie picked up a hernia injury right at the start of his loan stint at Newport County.
But Jamie was back on the pitch for Newport in League Two to play 70 minutes in a 2-0 win away to Gillingham. Miley said: "It felt good to be out there, it’s been a long time coming,” said the midfielder.
"It’s been a frustrating time with injury over the last few weeks, but I was delighted to get back out on the pitch and get the three points.
"The game was a bit different to my first game against Cheltenham in the EFL Trophy, a lot more second balls and a bit of back and fourth, but you’ve got to get used to that as a midfielder.
"I found out yesterday morning (Monday) that I knew I was going to be playing. I texted my family straight away, they were really pleased and they said they would be watching.
“I got a taste for what it’s like tonight to play in League Two and I want to keep my place in the team going forward. As a team, we're just all excited for the next game now against Fleetwood."
The news is understood to have delighted Eddie Howe back at Benton after the Toon boss handed Jamie his big chance in pre-season when he impressed in Japan and in a host of friendly fixtures.