Newcastle United have got a “close eye” on the potential signing of Marseille and Senegal striker Bamba Dieng this summer.
That is according to Dean Jones, who was speaking to This is Futbol about the Magpies’ potential transfer business as we near the transfer deadline.
According to 90min, Eddie Howe’s side have identified Dieng – who has been compared to Sadio Mané in his homeland – as a striker target this summer after the club made an unsuccessful attempt to sign Hugo Ekitike, whilst the club still reportedly have Alexander Isak on their shortlist this summer.
Marseille boss Igor Tudor has deemed Dieng as free to leave for a fee of around £15m this summer.
Asked about Newcastle’s top striker targets at present, Jones believes that the club are monitoring Dieng’s situation closely ahead of the transfer window shutting on 1st September.
“Yeah, I mean Dieng especially [alongside Benfica’s Gonçalo Ramos]. I think that Newcastle have got a close eye on this one.
“It’s a market that they’ve been really hot on.”
TIF Thoughts on Jones’ comments…
We believe that Dieng is a striker that Newcastle should be pursuing at a price of just £15m, with the club only having Callum Wilson and Chris Wood as their only out-and-out strikers available at the moment.
The 22-year-old, who has been hailed as ‘super’, is a decent goal threat when on the pitch, as he ranks in the top 1% of strikers across Europe’s top five leagues and European competition for non-penalty expected goals per 90 minutes (0.71) over the last 365 days according to FBref, scoring eight goals and providing three assists in 36 appearances last season.
Therefore, we believe that at a price of £15m, it’s a no-brainer for Howe to encourage PIF to invest in the striker so that he has more options up top during this Premier League campaign.