We all love a bit of fantasy football every now and then and we all have our opinions on who Newcastle United should be signing in each transfer window.
Sometimes it's fun to ask those closer to the game for their opinions on such things which is exactly what one fan did with Alan Shearer in a recent Q&A with The Athletic.
Shearer was asked who he'd sign in January if he were Newcastle manager.
While Shearer initially gave an answer of three positions he'd look to strengthen, he did eventually offer up on player's name and it is a player Newcastle have been linked with recently.
I doubt there'd be many out there who would disagree with the three positions Shearer has highlighted that need strengthening, and to be honest, I doubt there'd be much disagreement over the player he'd sign as a forward either.
"I would definitely be targeting a centre-forward, a right-sided forward and probably a centre-half. Those are the three priority positions.
"I’m biased, but those forward roles feel like the most important where there is little cover for Alexander Isak.
"Who exactly? It depends on how much Newcastle can spend. There’s Viktor Gyokeres smashing goals in left, right and centre at Sporting Lisbon. Manchester United have appointed Ruben Amorim, but he says he won’t be signing players from his former club in January. You have to target the best — and he is the best option at the moment."
Imagine having Viktor Gyokeres and Alexander Isak as your two main strikers. They've already shown that they can play together for Sweden too, so Howe could even go with two strikers and not have to worry about compatibility.
Although, given his form for Sporting, they certainly wouldn't let him go for cheap - unlike Super Sporting Director Dan Ashworth who let him leave Brighton for £1 million when he moved to Coventry.
Newcastle have been linked with an interest in Gyokeres, but he may be out of our reach now.
PL | GD | PTS | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
Liverpool
|
14 | 18 | 35 |
2 |
Chelsea
|
15 | 17 | 31 |
3 |
Arsenal
|
15 | 14 | 29 |
4 |
Manchester City
|
15 | 6 | 27 |
5 |
Nottingham Forest
|
15 | 1 | 25 |
6 |
Aston Villa
|
15 | 0 | 25 |
7 |
Brighton
|
15 | 3 | 24 |
8 |
Bournemouth
|
15 | 3 | 24 |
9 |
Brentford
|
15 | 3 | 23 |
10 |
Fulham
|
15 | 2 | 23 |
11 |
Tottenham Hotspur
|
15 | 12 | 20 |
12 |
Newcastle United
|
15 | -2 | 20 |
13 |
Manchester United
|
15 | 1 | 19 |
14 |
West Ham United
|
15 | -8 | 18 |
15 |
Everton
|
14 | -7 | 14 |
16 |
Leicester
|
15 | -9 | 14 |
17 |
Crystal Palace
|
15 | -6 | 13 |
18 |
Ipswich
|
15 | -13 | 9 |
19 |
Wolves
|
15 | -15 | 9 |
20 |
Southampton
|
15 | -20 | 5 |