Newcastle United have now been linked with 'one of the best strikers in the world' and the player himself has cast a shadow of doubt over his future.
Yesterday it came out that Newcastle were one of several clubs keen on signing Lille and Canada striker Jonathan David.
What's even more remarkable is that the 24-year-old could be available for as little as £25million.
With Canada being knocked out of the Copa America by Argentina in the early hours of this morning, David will be set to return to Lille soon, however, he doesn't know if he'll be there for long.
Speaking on his Strikers Corner podcast which he does alongside fellow Canadian striker Cyle Larin, David admitted he was aware of interest from other clubs and he hasn't yet committed his future to Lille amid all the speculation.
“There’s always a lot of noise. But I’m still here. I’m still at Lille.
“From there [after the Copa America], we’ll see if I end up going back to Lille for pre-season, or if I’m somewhere else, I don’t know.
“Things are obviously moving slow. I think things are going at the right pace.
“Obviously, I think everyone sees there’s a lot of clubs interested. Right now I’m still waiting for an offer to be put on the table to Lille.
“Then after, I’ll have to make a choice and make the right choice, whether it’s to leave, or to stay or what team do I pick, really.”
Competition for David's signature is likely to be intense with him hitting 26 goals in each of his last two seasons with Lille.
You'd imagine that if he wants to try and live up to that moniker of 'one of the best strikers in the world' then a move to the Premier League would be very appealing.
What Newcastle will once again bump up against is convincing a top player to move to a club that can't offer European football next season.
Hopefully, the promise of being in the competition moving forward can be enough. Also, convincing him to come St James' Park to essentially play second fiddle to Alexander Isak could be a tough sell, although a change in system with those two up top could be devastating.
PL | GD | PTS | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
Liverpool
|
7 | 11 | 18 |
2 |
Manchester City
|
7 | 9 | 17 |
3 |
Arsenal
|
7 | 9 | 17 |
4 |
Chelsea
|
7 | 8 | 14 |
5 |
Aston Villa
|
7 | 3 | 14 |
6 |
Brighton
|
7 | 3 | 12 |
7 |
Newcastle United
|
7 | 1 | 12 |
8 |
Fulham
|
7 | 2 | 11 |
9 |
Tottenham Hotspur
|
7 | 6 | 10 |
10 |
Nottingham Forest
|
7 | 1 | 10 |
11 |
Brentford
|
7 | 0 | 10 |
12 |
West Ham United
|
7 | -1 | 8 |
13 |
Bournemouth
|
7 | -2 | 8 |
14 |
Manchester United
|
7 | -3 | 8 |
15 |
Leicester
|
7 | -3 | 6 |
16 |
Everton
|
7 | -8 | 5 |
17 |
Ipswich
|
7 | -8 | 4 |
18 |
Crystal Palace
|
7 | -5 | 3 |
19 |
Southampton
|
7 | -11 | 1 |
20 |
Wolves
|
7 | -12 | 1 |