‘There was an offer’ – Journalist claims Newcastle wanted to sign 27-yr-old attacker – originally posted on Sportslens.com
Newcastle tried to sign the former Napoli striker Arkadiusz Milik.
According to journalist Vincenzo Morabito, the move did not materialise because the player was not convinced by Newcastle’s efforts to sign him.
He said to CalcioNapoli24: “Milik to Newcastle? For Arek, the desire of the club was lacking. There was an offer of €20m, but Napoli at that moment considered his valuation higher, around €25-30m.
“I think it is not easy to work in a club with a president who is certainly good and active, Giuntoli is a top director of football, but perhaps he needs space. De Laurentiis is not an easy subject to please, both when selling and when buying. Image rights have blocked many businesses, for example.”
The Polish striker ended up signing for Marseille in January and he has done well for the French outfit since then. The 27-year-old has four goals and eight games so far.
Apparently, an offer of around €20 million was submitted but the Italian club were demanding around €25 to 30 million at the time.
The Magpies could certainly use someone like Milik right now and the Polish striker could have made a massive difference to their season if the Premier League side had signed him.
Newcastle signed Callum Wilson from Bournemouth but the striker is injured right now and the Magpies are struggling to score goals.
The Premier League side are currently two points adrift of the relegation zone and the fans will be wondering what could have been had their club signed the Polish striker.
The likes of Andy Carroll, Joelinton and Dwight Gayle are the alternative options to Wilson at the club and Milik would have been a major upgrade on them.
Having a quality option like Milik would have helped Newcastle cope with their injuries better.
Ashley has been heavily criticised for his lack of ambition in the transfer market over the years and it remains to be seen whether the failure to sign Milik could cost the Magpies their stay in the Premier League.