Newcastle United have reportedly set their sights on Almeria’s star forward, Umar Sadiq, who is valued at around €25 million.
According to a report from Fichajes, Newcastle United have entered the race to sign Umar Sadiq. It appears their newly appointed manager Eddie Howe is keen on bolstering his options in the goalscoring department, with the UD Almeria forward emerging as an ideal option.
Almeria have unearthed hidden attacking gems in recent years, including current SL Benfica star Darwin Nunez. Sadiq is the next player to have made an impression for the Andalusians, who will be hoping for a similar figure of €25 million Benfica paid to sign Nunez in the summer.
A native of Kaduna, Sadiq is a well-travelled footballer who has had stints with multiple clubs across Europe, including AS Roma, Torino, Bologna, Partizan Belgrade and even Rangers. But the Nigerian forward made his actual breakthrough at Partizan, scoring 23 goals in 52 appearances before joining Almeria last summer, for a fee of just €5 million.
The capture of the Nigerian international has turned out to be a bargain for Almeria. In just over two years, the attacker has notched up 58 competitive appearances, scoring 29 goals while chipping in with 13 assists.
Twenty-seven of Sadiq’s 42 goal involvements came in his debut campaign in the Segunda Division. Unfortunately, he was not able to help Almeria secure promotion back to top-flight, as he failed to score a single goal in the two promotion playoffs matches against Girona.
Nevertheless, the 24-year-old has hit the ground running in the new season, scoring seven goals in 15 matches. His contributions have helped his team remain top of the Segunda Division, with the Indalico highly expected to gain direct promotion by the end of the season.
However, they might not be able to keep hold of their star asset Umar Sadiq for long, as the forward continues to be linked with a move to the Premier League. Other than Newcastle, the Nigerian has been linked with a move to Tottenham Hotspur in the past, so we could potentially witness a transfer duel between the two teams in the upcoming January window.
Interestingly, though, Tottenham are also keen on the services of another ex-Almeria forward in Darwin Nunez. In fact, it won’t be surprising to see the Lilywhites set their focus completely on the Uruguayan international, who is younger and offers more potential. It could, in turn, open up the opportunity for Newcastle United to snap up Sadiq, whose €25 million price tag is unlikely to be a problem for the new owners.
