Newcastle United are inching closer to getting a deal across for Atalanta’s Duvan Zapata who is also keen on moving to the Premier League. Newcastle are looking to add another striker to their squad after the signing of Chris Wood from Burnley, Zapata being top of the list.
According to Sunday Mirror, Atalanta are now open to negotiating a loan deal for the striker. The loan agreement will be for six months and the Magpies will be hoping to make the move permanent next summer. There will be a loan fee involved of around £8 million and Newcastle will hold the option to buy.
Earlier this month, Newcastle made a bid for the Atalanta star. The Italian club rejected the offer as they were holding out for a offer north of €30 million. Having signed Chris Wood for £25million, it is hard to imagine Newcastle shelling out another €30 million. However, a loan deal is something both the teams could get agree upon.
The player is also quite keen on his move to the Premier League(according to Daily Express). There are also reports of the player and the club agreeing on personal terms ahead of the loan deal. This will come as good news to Eddie Howe who has found it difficult to recruit the players of his choice despite little financial constraints.
What will Duvan Zapata bring to the Magpies?
Zapata has been impressive for Atalanta since he arrived in the Italian League. He has scored 78 goals in 152 appearances for Atalanta. He has been a vital part of the Italian side this term as well, having 19 goal involvements in 22 games.
Zapata is a 6’2 striker who can be a defenders nightmare. He is a brilliant target man and can also hold the ball up. He brings in an interesting mix of speed, power and finishing which is a deadly combination and somewhat of a requirement in a Premier League striker.
Newcastle are battling relegation this season, currently, they are 18th on the table with 15 points. They are one point behind Norwich but have a game in hand over them. A signing like Zapata would severely help their chances of retaining top-flight football.
Duvan Zapata will bring in goals for the Magpies, which have been hard to come by of late. Newcastle United have only outscored 2 teams in the league so far, Burnley and Norwich. If they are to avoid relegation, they need to increase their goal tally and with Zapata, there is no shortage of goals.
With Calum Wilson sidelined with an injury, Zapata should be a regular in the Newcastle first team alongside new signing Chris Wood. There could be an argument about his age as the striker is turning 31 this year. But Zapata is still pretty fit for a 30-year-old. And his experience from the European competitions could be immense for Newcastle in the relegation scrap.
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