Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe has insisted that the Magpies must act as if they have money to spend this summer - regardless of any twists and turns in PSR rules or Associated Party Transaction tweaks.

The Magpies have been spotted at Lille fixtures this season as clubs begin the fight to try to sign Jonathan David from Ligue 1. However, between now and the summer transfer window swinging open for business, there could well be other striker options for Newcastle.

A lot will hinge on whether Callum Wilson remains on board and whether he is handed a new contract for next season. But even if he stays and Newcastle qualify for the Champions League or either the Europa League or Europa Conference League, they will need a layer of extra cover for European commitments.

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Howe said: "I have always said we have to do the work. So we have to prepare as if we can (sign players this month). That is the best way to be. We have done the work and we know what we potentially would do. We know what positions we would potentially recruit in. It's not for me to talk here. It is just so that everybody knows that the work has gone on. Otherwise, you lose track of the market and you lose track of players. You lose valuable knowledge that we may need in the future. We have done all the work we need."

Here, we take a look at some of the possible forward options for the Magpies this summer.

Jonathan David

Newcastle's head of recruitment Steve Nickson was spotted in the stands for Lille's recent Ligue 1 game against Nice before United followed up by attending Lille's narrow Champions League defeat at Liverpool.

David is available on a free transfer but a hefty agent fee would be required and he his wages could be around the £150,000 per week mark. The likes of Barcelona, Arsenal and Chelsea are also keen on the star and an unnamed Premier League club tried to beat the rush by bidding £10million for his services in January.

That was a straight rejection from Lille as they argued losing out on Champions League football would cost them more. And Canada international David is key to that.

Victor Osimhen

United will be offered the chance again to land explosive striker Victor Osimhen again this summer with Napoli keen to offload the Nigeria star.

A minimum fee release clause of around £60m will be available to Newcastle this summer. Incredibly, Osimhen was left with no club in any of the top Euro leagues and ended up on loan at Galatasaray with the Turkish Lig offering him a lifeline with most other transfer windows closed.

The Turkish top-flight leaders would love him to stay but can't afford to pay a permanent fee. The big question mark for Newcastle could be Osimhen's wages with the striker picking up over £200,000 per week during his Napoli days. That is believed to have dropped to around £110,000 per week at Galatasaray but he is highly likely to leave Turkey after his loan deal.

Victor Boniface

It is understood that a switch to St James' Park would interest the 24-year-old Bayer Leverkusen star, with intermediaries involved with the striker looking at potential exit routes this summer. Boniface has overcome hamstring injuries this season but was due to make a move to Al Nassr in the January window.

However, a £49million move fell through at the last minute leaving the striker with Bayer for the second half of the season. But after accepting the club were open to cashing in on him, Boniface is now considering all of his options.

The striker has blasted in 64 goals in 129 career games with 29 assists to boot. He's capture the imagination of a few that's for sure.

Thierno Barry

The 22-year-old Frenchman is a name that has been put to Newcastle via agents. Barry made the move to Villarreal from Basel last summer and has impressed in La Liga.

He has eight goals in 16 starts for his new club after a £12m move from the Swiss League. After scoring 14 goals in 30 starts for Basel, he was already on Newcastle's radar.