Newcastle looking to sign mega-money centre-forward

The start of the transfer window only kicked off on the 15th of June, and Newcastle United have already had to bat away several suitors for Sandro Tonali.

The Premier League outfit have reportedly turned down a big offer for their standout Italian from Tottenham Hotspur, with Manchester United also interested in snapping up the ex-AC Milan midfielder this summer.

Alongside being hit with plenty of interest in their players, Eddie Howe‘s men have also been hurt by Liverpool once more in the transfer market, with Victor Munoz opting to join the Reds over moving to St. James’ Park, much like Hugo Ekitike snubbed Tyneside for Merseyside last summer.

It’s not all doom and gloom on the transfer front, thankfully, as Newcastle remain in the hunt for attacking reinforcements, despite the Spaniard’s well-publicised rejection.

Newcastle looking at signing new striker

It’s clear this summer that one of the Magpies’ main priorities is recruiting a new winger, with Anthony Gordon now amazingly on the books of Barcelona.

The likes of Matias Fernandez-Pardo and Leandtro Trossard are reportedly on the Toon shopping list to restock down the flanks, but Howe and Co are also keen to add another striker to their ranks at some point.

As per a report from Football Insider, it indicates that former Liverpool attacker Darwin Nunez is being looked at, with it likely that the Uruguayan centre-forward will leave Al-Hilal in the near future.

At one stage this off-season, it was even alleged that Liverpool would be going back in for their former hit-and-miss striker, but Football Insider has poured cold water over those claims.

Still, it is being reported that several Premier League clubs are keen on bringing Nunez back to England, which includes Newcastle.

While it’s well known that the South American suffered from barren patches of form at Anfield, as he exited with only five Premier League goals next to his name during his swansong season, the 26-year-old could still be viewed as an upgrade on Nick Woltemade if he enters the Toon ranks shortly, as Newcastle undergoes a makeover in the attacking department.

Why Nunez could be an upgrade on Woltemade

Joining the ranks last summer for a whopping £69m fee, the pressure was always going to be extreme on the Bremen-born striker’s shoulders to be an instant success from the get-go on Tyneside.

He did answer back to his critics initially, with four goals put away from his opening five Premier League clashes, but his form fell off a cliff after that, leading to him only bagging one top-flight strike across the entirety of 2026 to date.

It’s not a great shock; therefore, that Howe is assessing his centre-forward options heading into next season, and while Nunez did end his up-and-down Reds stint with only five goals collected across 30 Premier League clashes, he is more potent in front of goal than Woltemade when performing at full pelt.

The 2023/24 season, in particular, saw Nunez come into his own in the English game, with a stunning 11 goals and ten assists amassed from 36 top-flight contests.

Jurgen Klopp praised the 39-time Uruguay international relentlessly when he was still positioned in the Anfield dug-out, with the German boss once lauding Nunez as having “quality coming out of his ears.”

Further noted as being “one of the best strikers in the world” by ex-Reds royalty Luis Suarez, with an effortless 117 career goals next to his name, Nunez will be hoping that Newcastle are a better long-term fit than Liverpool, if a move is agreed.

Woltemade only has 86 career goals to fall back on, when weighing their numbers up side-by-side, with Newcastle’s rash spending to bring the towering striker to England not working out.

With reports suggesting that the one-time Stuttgart sensation could be off this summer, as well, do not be surprised if the Toon look to the Al-Hilal number seven as his replacement, as Howe attempts to freshen up the ranks to improve on a middling 12th-place finish last season.

After all, despite being taken on a rollercoaster journey on Merseyside, the 26-year-old is a former Premier League champion, so he knows what it takes to be a success story in the challenging division, with Nunez usurping Woltemade in Howe’s first-team plans if a surprise deal is agreed.