Newcastle United journalist Liam Kennedy has discussed Duvan Zapata and a potential late bid that the club could have made in the January transfer window.
Scoring goals has been a problem for Newcastle this season, with Eddie Howe’s men only managing to bag 21 in their 21 games so far during the campaign.
They did go some way to addressing that issue in the January transfer window with the signing of Chris Wood from Burnley, but it seems they weren’t willing to stop there, as they were linked to a whole host of players until late into the window, including a number of forwards.
One such name was that of Atalanta forward Zapata, with claims suggesting that he could have been available for a £5.5m loan fee.
But speaking on NUFC Matters when asked by a fan why Newcastle didn’t simply pay the £5.5m to get him in, Kennedy rejected the notion that the club could have just done the deal if they wanted, whilst also dismissing the idea that he would only have cost £5.5m to sign.
He said: “I don’t think it was that straightforward. I think that’s simplifying the deal far too much, from my understanding.
“There always are difficulties in doing these kinds of deals. Plus obviously, we know the window in Italy closed early. So it wasn’t something they could really turn to at the end. They couldn’t get that deal done.
“I think it was a lot more expensive than £5.5m to do a loan. I think that’s my understanding of it. I think it was a very, very expensive deal.”
TIF Thoughts on Liam Kennedy’s comments about Duvan Zapata and Newcastle United…
Would you prefer Zapata or Origi at NUFC?
Zapata
Origi
Zapata certainly comes across as someone who could really have helped Newcastle out. His record in recent seasons – hitting double digits for league goals in each of the past five campaigns – shows that he knows where the goal is.
And whilst there may have been some adjustment time to the conditions of the Premier League, even if he was half as productive for Newcastle as he has been for Atalanta, he could still have been a great help to them in their battle against relegation.
Let’s just hope Newcastle don’t end up regretting not making a bigger push for the deal.
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