Newcastle United sent scouts to watch Zimbabwe forward Matthew Rusike, who currently plies his trade for Swedish outfit Halmstads BK, according to Kvallposten (‘South Sweden’s evening newspaper’).
The 25-year-old, who was once on the books of Championship side Charlton Athletic, has reportedly attracted attention from a number of Scandinavian clubs, as well as the Magpies – though I’m not sure quite why he has attracted this attention. In his career, Rusike has made a total of 61 appearances, scoring just eleven times in the process. In fact, he has actually picked up more yellow cards (13) than goals.
When speaking to Kvallposten, Rusike had this to say with regards to his future: “My destination, I don’t want to comment on right now, but I have a few things that I’m thinking about, but it’s a little early yet. Hopefully fix it themselves”
Matthew was then asked about whether he had heard about Newcastle’s alleged interest in him. He responded, with a big grin on his face: “No comments.”
Rusike’s natural position is as a secondary striker (similar to the role Ayoze Perez currently occupies, just off of Aleksandar Mitrovic), though he can also play on the left, or upfront.
In a similar situation to Demba Ba’s in 2011, Newcastle should be able to sign Rusike on a free, following a clause that allows him to leave Halmstads if they are relegated.
