Newcastle United Join The Race For This In-demand Ligue 1 Attacker: Why Howe Must Make The Call | OneFootball

If a report from The i Paper is believed to be true, Newcastle United have set their sights on Lille centre-forward Jonathan David. But they are not alone in the race with Premier League rivals Manchester United, Tottenham, West Ham United, Chelsea, Liverpool, along with La Liga heavyweights Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, and Serie A giants Inter Milan and Juventus also keeping close tabs on the Canada international available on a Bosman in the upcoming summer window.

The 25-year-old striking ace spent his youth years with Gloucester Dragons, Ottawa Gloucester Hornets and Ottawa Internationals before being roped in by the Belgian outfit Gent in January 2018. Soon, he emerged as their first-choice ‘number 9’, and went on to fire 37 goals and lay on 15 times in 83 first-team appearances over the next two seasons [stats via Transfermarket].

ISTANBUL, TURKEY – AUGUST 13: Jonathan David of Lille celebrates victory during the UEFA Champions League Third Qualifying Round match between Fenerbahce and Lille FC at Ulker Stadium on August 13, 2024 in Istanbul, Turkey. (Photo by Ahmad Mora/Getty Images)

His impressive scoring streak earned him a €30m transfer to Lille in the summer of 2020. So far, David has netted 107 times and registered 27 assists donning the Mastiffs’ colours. While he was pivotal to their famous 2020-21 Ligue 1 triumph, since then, the French side have been nowhere close to Paris St-Germain in the quest for silverware. A contract extension is improbable at this stage with no shortage of suitors, and the Magpies, sweating over Alexander Isak’s long-term future, could snap him up over fellow league rivals.

Newcastle United outplayed Liverpool in the League Cup final, thus ending their title drought of seventy years. They have been on the rise since their £300m takeover by the Saudi-led consortium. Also, the club have vastly improved on the pitch under Eddie Howe, who secured Champions League football in 2023, for the first time since the 2002-03 season.

Why Newcastle United Must Snap Him Up

Although the Toon Army remain hopeful of sneaking into the Champions League qualification places, the growing interest in Isak is indeed alarming considering the Swedish sensation’s stellar form high up the pitch. Liverpool could make an astronomical offer for the free-scoring forward to replace Darwin Nunez, and Newcastle, who splashed a club-record £63m fee to snap him up from Real Sociedad, might sanction the transfer for a significant financial boost towards bolstering the squad with several summer additions.

Meanwhile, the Tynesiders are willing to let Callum Wilson leave for free due to his lack of involvement with persistent injury problems. William Osula has hardly made an impact as a sporadic option, and the club, therefore, must step up the chase for David irrespective of Isak’s future. The Canadian’s sharpness, mobility and poaching traits should help him attune to the demands of the English game.