Adam Armstrong – Stay or Loan?

One of the biggest questions facing Rafa Benitez about our current Squad has to be the 19 year old Geordie striker – Adam Armstong. Scoring 20 goals in 40 games last season for Coventry when he went out on loan just shows that he knows where the goal is. Over recent seasons Newcastle have been dying for that sort of player up top that will guarantee you goals. But is including him in our squad the right time for him and his development?

He has shown at reserve, League One and England U19’s level that he can deliver when asked of him, but is the Championship just one step too soon? With Armstrong being such a young talent the last thing we want to do is have him sit on the bench week in, week out and not get any minutes.

For me, if Rafa is to include him in the squad for the season he has to be bringing him on or playing him so he can be learning and hopefully grab some goals at the same time. Anything less than this and I do believe being out on loan getting regular playing time is the best thing for him and Newcastle as he has so much potential to be a great Number 9 for the Toon.

If we look at the current Newcastle United squad I do not see any reason why he should not get be getting on for us. The strikers on our books at the moment consists of Mitrovic, Gayle, Perez and Riviere.

Having a look at these 4 players, in my opinion, our starting 2 have to be Mitrovic and Gayle – both top quality strikers and both will be out to prove a point this season. Perez has unquestionable passion and energy every single game he plays, he has scored some wonderful goals for us in the Black and White stripes, but one of the best things about his game is his versatility anywhere in the attacking third, so I think we will see him playing behind the strikers a lot more this season.

Finally, we come to Emmanuel Riviere, Armstrong would play and/or come on the pitch over Riviere every single time for me. Riviere has had 2 seasons to try and impress and has failed almost every single time. With only 1 league goal to his name in the 2 season who could really argue with me?

In our 2-2 draw with Doncaster on Wednesday night we saw Adam Armstrong start which shows Benitez is clearly taking him seriously, and so he should. I hope to see him be played again in our up and coming pre-season games and hopefully he will show enough for Benitez to consider him in his season’s plans. One or two injuries in the striker department and we could well see Armstrong in our starting line up. If we were still playing in the Premier League I would say it is a step too far. But with him tearing League One apart last season a step up to the Championship and coming on for Mitrovic, Gayle or Perez could really see him grow as a player and hopefully increase our goals tally.

60 thoughts on “Adam Armstrong – Stay or Loan?

  1. Good article Gallowmate. Armstrong would have to be considered fourth place striker until he proves himself. I rate MItro, Gayle and Perez above him. Rivi is a complete mystery to me. His strike rate is almost 0. Why he’s still with us is a complete mystery. However surely this season is his last chance with us?

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  2. I would try to give Armstrong at least 15 minutes in games in which we are comfortably ahead. Bring him along as quickly as possible or send him on loan. Rafa knows all this of course so if he stays he’ll play.

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  3. Hi GeordieTwo,

    Yes I agree with that!

    Perez showed the Striker in him on Saturday against Sporting Lokeren. It would be great to see Armstrong get some minutes and as soon as there are injurys it would see his inclusion a lot more!

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  4. Spot on Gallowmate. I’m of two minds about bringing in another striker. The bunch we have are very young. Still I think I’d rather see the LB, CB and AMF positions strengthened first if possible.

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  5. Yes I did think that. I’m surprised we have not been linked with Robson-Kanu. Available on a free and plenty of Championship experience. Also in good form as we saw at Euro 2016. Especially now his move to Hull has fallen through. Can play wing & upfront.

    The defence definitely needs some more into it yes

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  6. Robson-Kanu would be an excellent pickup Gallowmate. He’s got poise around goal and some pace. Rafa will be watching carefully with such a young striker crop. He would definitely act in January if we’re short some crucial goals.

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  7. Rafa is rated 36th in the world by 442 mag. That’s his 2015 ranking. Isn’t that a slap in the face with a wet kipper? I think he’s top 20 surely. And this is what they said about him: “The current perception of Benitez as a bumbling oddity is somewhat unfair” Somewhat unfair????

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  8. With Mitro suspended, I don’t see why we would not keep Armstrong for at least the first few games and then consider a loan towards the end of the transfer window, but keep him if we do not sign another striker or if he does really well. I still think we need a proven goalscorer and preferably not British as the transfer market has gone nuts here as Shamrock pointed out on the last thread.

    I know the loan rules have changed as well and temporary loans are not allowed. I am not sure how that affects recall clauses as if we loan Armstrong I would like the option of bringing him back before January depending on how the rest of our strikers get on. None have been prolific so that could be our weak link. Hope not.

    I think Aarons will get goals if given the chance and if he stays fit.

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  9. I honestly think we should move for McCormack from Fulham he garanties goals , Norwich have put a bid in for him but we could match their offer and offer Armstrong on a season loan . He then gets games at this level and Fulham dont have too spend the money received and we get a proven goal scorer , everyone happy .

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  10. Still have Hayden, Colback, Anita and Saivet to play the holding role. Need an attacking midfielder when Sissoko leaves. Maybe that is why Pritchard is being linked?

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  11. So if Tiote and Sissy go we really will have too strengthen midfield or we are up the Creek without a paddel when injuries set in .

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  12. Everytime I look at the Pogba story the fee increases by 10 million. The Mail are now reporting that the clubs and Agent are haggling over the 110 million fee. I am not sure if he is even worth half that.

    We should add another 5 onto Sissoko 🙂

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  13. Pogba is vastly overrated, Italian league makes him look like a superstar but the league is weak these days. He will look ordinary in Spain or England in my opinion.

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  14. you should be ashamed of yourself, thee are women and kids coming on this blog. You should be ashamed of yourself posting **** like that you cretin.
    👿

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  15. That’s not the kind of video I was looking for. At the moment, anyway.

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  16. Rafa is assembling a team which will consolidate nicely mid table in the Championship. Another garbage performance against third rate opposition.

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  17. Can’t see Armstrong getting a squad number this season, he’ll end up being loaned out to Kilmarnock in the Scottish Premier League.

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  18. Munich Mag:
    Rafa is assembling a team which will consolidate nicely mid table in the Championship. Another garbage performance against third rate opposition.

    MM: cheer up man, the season hasn’t started yet and we have much more quality than any of the other teams in The Championship. Have a couple more Spatens and even NUFC’s prospects will look rosy.

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  19. Anita has proven his value to the club over and over again. His performances late last season at RB were excellent.

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  20. Munich Mag what’s up with you mate? You seem very negative about the club under Rafa. Give him some time to prove himself and we’ll get back up. There’s a lot to be more optimistic about at the club now I think.

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  21. 2-0 final. Well done to the lads. A brilliant save by Darlow near the end apparently.

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  22. Well it’s so busy on here I’d better just sit back and read others’ comments. 😆

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  23. Saying we will walk the league doesn’t mean we will have a 100% record and that we will not have some ugly wins like tonight. It just says that overall we have the quality and the Manager to have a very high win % and low loss % and will therefore pile up the points.

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  24. To say walk the league to me suggests we will finish 10-15pts ahead of 2nd place.
    I don’t see it being that easy, but I do expect us to win the league – and I bloody well hope and expect Rafa & the players to be aiming for the title too.

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  25. If Tiote goes, there aren’t many old heads left in our squad – is that Rafas intention?.
    He’s systematically removed most of the older players who have went through the turbulent times under Pardew, Carver & McClaren.

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  26. I would like to see a statement signing of a goalscorer from a foreign league. Hopefully, Rafa’s reputation is enough to get them to drop down for a year. As we all know, PL based players are just too expensive. We could easily double a players salary from Spain or Italy or even South America which is why I think this might be doable. Spend 15-20 million and really get the city excited. Better that than 13 million on a 30 year old McCormack.

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  27. Keep him and give him minutes. He’s a natural goalscorer unlike Gayle who’s more a poke in the rebound type

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  28. I would keep Armstrong. I think the kid is a natural talent that needs fine tuning. He seems to have a great attitude & desire to be a success with us – give him the chance I say.

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  29. Eric Sykes:
    I would like to see a statement signing of a goalscorer from a foreign league. Hopefully, Rafa’s reputation is enough to get them to drop down for a year. As we all know, PL based players are just too expensive. We could easily double a players salary from Spain or Italy or even South America which is why I think this might be doable. Spend 15-20 million and really get the city excited. Better that than 13 million on a 30 year old McCormack.

    Eric – do you have a player in mind mate?
    I’m not sure McCormack is the answer – but equally I’m not sure another foreign player who doesn’t know the English game is the answer either.
    I’m a fan of Leigh Griffiths at Celtic. The kid is a goal machine & has always done well wherever he’s played. I’m not sure he’s the statement signing or whether he’d cut it, but his record shows he’s a goal scorer.

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  30. Kimtoon:
    Bloody hell, I really wish someone would say when a new thread is started

    this not the first time this has happened,its getting a pain,its not fair on the people writing threads for us,i thought last night funny theres no comments,makes you think is it worth it!!

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  31. Sharpy: I don’t have anyone in mind. I am relying on Rafa’s contacts and instincts. I think what I am saying is as much about how crazy the fees have gotten in the PL as anything else and there has to be more value elsewhere even though they may take a while to settle.

    There are quite a few players who have settled in their first year and we have even had a few. Even recently you would have to say Tiote, Winjaldum, Mbemba, Debuchy, Cabaye, Janmaat and Perez were successes to go along with failures such as Cabella, MBiwa, Thauvin and Marveaux.

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  32. P.S. sorry about that, sometimes if I’m in a rush I forget to post the link on the previous thread. Your best bet is to refresh the home page just to check but I will always endeavour to post the link to the new thread which I do MOST of the time.

    Kimtoon:
    Bloody hell, I really wish someone would say when a new thread is started

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  33. Munich mag you should support Sunderland. You obviously know nothing about footy so pack your bags to Munich. Support the guys don’t look for attention.

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