Journalist shares major Newcastle United transfer update amid FFP fears

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·2 December 2023

Journalist shares major Newcastle United transfer update amid FFP fears

Newcastle United have made an approach for a Stuttgart striker Serhou Guirassy, who has been in impressive goalscoring form this season.
Guirassy is attracting interest from other Premier League clubs, including Manchester United, as well as AC Milan.
However, Newcastle's pursuit of Guirassy may be hindered by their concerns over FFP and their preference for loan deals in the January transfer window.

Newcastle United are in the market for a new centre forward in January, though transfer insider Dean Jones has revealed a potential stumbling block in their pursual of Stuttgart ace Serhou Guirassy, in an interview with GIVEMESPORT.

The Tyneside-based club have endured a season riddled by injuries to their two main striker options, Alexander Isak and Callum Wilson, and could seize the opportunity to enrich their front line by signing the red-hot Bundesliga centre forward.

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Guirassy rich vein of goalscoring form would help Eddie Howe and his men continue their impressive record in the Premier League and would also boost their chances of stamping their authority on the Champions League, on the basis they progress out of the group stages.

Newcastle have ‘made an approach’ for the £15m striker

The 27-year-old marksman has been in sublime form since the 2023/24 campaign got underway and, as such, it’s little surprise to see him become hot property as we approach the January transfer window. He is quickly becoming a household name in European football circles, having plundered an eye-catching 16 goals in 774 minutes of football – a return that sees him present among the 15 best players in Europe this season based on stats.

Both Manchester United and Newcastle have been mooted as potential would-be buyers and, according to reports in France, the duo of Premier League clubs have made an initial approach to sign the Stuttgart striker when the winter window opens for business, while Serie A giants AC Milan are in the mix, too.

Available for a modest fee thanks to his £15m release clause, both sides interested in his services could seal the bargain of the window should they get their hands on the 12-cap Guinea ace. Saying that, as reported by 90min, West Ham United, Brentford, Everton and Crystal Palace have all been credited with an interest, too.

Guirassy is one of their preferred targets to strengthen their front line, but will have to fend off a plethora of suitors in order to get a deal over the line, something that perhaps may hinder them from progressing with a deal.

Dean Jones on Serhou Guirassy to Newcastle United

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, Jones has insisted that the clamour around Guirassy’s signature continues to grow as we edge closer to the January transfer window, while also claiming that he is ‘so attainable’ thanks to his low release clause.

The transfer insider named Newcastle as one of the six Premier League clubs that harbour an interest but noted their ‘fears of FFP’ as a main reason why Guirassy potential arrival in Tyneside is met with skepticism. Meanwhile, Jones also suggests that his current employers, Stuttgart, are working tirelessly behind the scenes to free up funds to banish his release clause and offer him a pay rise in hopes to retain him beyond the January transfer window. He said:

“[Serhou] Guirassy is definitely one of the more interesting storylines for the January window because he currently has this low release clause which makes him so attainable. “Now, I’m told there has been some movements on the Stuttgart end to try to open up money that would give him a pay rise and remove that clause. I’m not aware of any breakthrough on it yet, and they obviously don’t have much time, but it is something to be aware of. About six clubs in the Premier League have been linked to him so far and the Newcastle speculation has started to turn quite strong, but I have to say I would tread a little cautiously before getting too excited. “Even that level of spending is best avoided by Newcastle at the moment because of fears around FFP and that is not a level of spending that can be spread across a period of time - they would want it all up front. I’m honestly not convinced Newcastle would pay it in January and my information is they prefer loans as their path into the transfer market this winter.”

Magpies eye Guirassy alternative

Signing another striker, despite having two top level assets at their disposal in Isak and Wilson, could be the next logical step for Newcastle to take in order to be considered a top European-proven side. And as Jones mentioned, a deal on a loan basis may be the way forward to alleviate their injury-struck gap at the top of the pitch.

As such, Paris Saint-Germain starlet Hugo Ekitike could be the perfect alternative to Guirassy, with Jones recently telling GIVEMESPORT that Howe and his entourage are ‘genuinely interested’ in the young French sensation.

On top of that, CaughtOffside's Ben Jacobs recently revealed that the 21-year-old has been a long-standing target of theirs and that a potential temporary stint in the Premier League is on the cards. The report suggested that a deal between Newcastle and his then-club Stade de Reims had been agreed in January 2022 before the player himself rejected the switch.

Now that 18 months have passed and Newcastle are boasting Champions League credibility, Ekitike may well have changed his mind, while Everton’s Dominic Calvert-Lewin has also been earmarked as a potential incoming, Jones told TEAMtalk. Though, the Toffees would be averse to losing such a key figure to a Premier League rival.