Newcastle ‘plotting swoop’ for French striker to stop him from joining Tottenham – report | OneFootball

Newcastle United are planning a bid for a France international striker in the final days of the January transfer window to enhance the options for manager Eddie Howe in attack, according to a report, leaving Tottenham Hotspur boss Thomas Frank to make a big decision.

Nick Woltemade, Yoane Wissa and William Osula are the three recognised strikers in the Newcastle squad at the moment. While Woltemade’s return of nine goals and four assists in 31 appearances for the Magpies so far this season is commendable, Wissa’s injury problems have restricted him to just two starts in the Premier League in the 2025/26 campaign.

As for Osula, the Danish forward is only 22 and has played just 213 minutes in the Premier League so far this campaign.

According to Sports Boom, Newcastle are on the hunt for a new striker, and manager Eddie Howe has identified Crystal Palace star Jean-Philippe Mateta as a potential target.

The report has claimed that Newcastle, who are owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), are ‘plotting a swoop’ for the France international striker.

Newcastle, who are aiming to finish in the Premier League top four this season, are among the clubs who have ‘expressed an interest’ in the 28-year-old this month.

The Magpies’ interest in Mateta will come as an added threat to Tottenham’s chances of signing him.

TEAMtalk’s transfer correspondent, Fraser Fletcher, reported on January 23 that Tottenham are interested in a January deal for Mateta.

With Richarlison having injury issues, Tottenham need a striker to solve manager Thomas Frank’s goalscoring woes and provide support to Dominic Solanke.

However, we understand that Tottenham signing Mateta depends on Randal Kolo Muani’s loan deal from Juventus being terminated early.

With Newcastle now joining the race for Mateta, Tottenham need to decision whether to make a bid for the French striker before it is too late.

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Chelsea also keen on Jean-Philippe Mateta – sources

Newcastle, though, will not find it easy to sign Mateta from Palace in the January transfer window, given competition from other major clubs.

We understand that Mateta wants to leave Palace in the middle of the season, with the Eagles looking for up to £40million (€46.1m, $54.2m) for the striker.

That has alerted Chelsea to a potential deal for the 28-year-old, with last season’s UEFA Conference League winners making contact with Mateta’s representatives.

Everton are also interested in Mateta, but the Toffees need to offload Beto first to make room in their squad for the Palace star.

Sources have told us that Juventus have already made offers, including a loan-to-buy structure, but Palace have rejected them.

Juventus, though, are continuing to monitor the situation of Mateta.

Latest Tottenham and Newcastle transfer news

Meanwhile, Tottenham will reportedly try to sign another player from Liverpool, as Andy Robertson closes in on a transfer to the north London club.