Newcastle United have joined Premier League rivals Wolves in the race to sign Montpellier forward Andy Delort, with the Ligue 1 side placing a valuation of around £14m on the 29-year-old, per The Sun.
Steve Bruce’s side have been struggling in the final third so far this season, with just 18 goals scored in their opening 17 Premier League matches. Callum Wilson has managed to score eight of those and provide a further three assists (Sofascore), with a paltry nine league goals between the rest of the squad (plus one own goal).
It has already been reported that Newcastle will not have a transfer budget to add to their squad this month. However, a 1-0 defeat against rock-bottom Sheffield United on Tuesday leaves them peering nervously at a relegation battle, and that could perhaps tempt Mike Ashley into making some funds available..
Delort has been enjoying an excellent campaign in Ligue 1 with Montpellier and he has been involved in 14 goals in 17 appearances, with eight goals and six assists to his name (Sofascore). The 10-cap Algeria international is thought to have attracted the attention of Wolves, while Bruce is also an admirer of the 29-year-old, per The Sun.
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Newcastle were not expected to spend in January, but it will be interesting to see what happens in the next few weeks if their awful eight-game winless run continues. Ashley cannot afford for the Magpies to be relegated, as that would likely risk the potential resurrection of the proposed takeover of the club.
Delort has already endured one difficult spell in England with Wigan Athletic a few years ago, failing to score in 11 appearances for the Latics. However, the 29-year-old has got his career back on track at Montpellier and is a different player now, full of confidence having averaged 2.2 shots and 1.8 key passes per game so far this term (Sofascore).
Wolves are in a much stronger position than the Magpies to negotiate a deal for the striker, but Newcastle might need to take a gamble and try and secure his signature. Were he to come in and add a few more goals to the team, it could yet make the difference between staying up and going down this season.
