Newcastle in pole position to sign striker on free transfer - Alan Nixon

With PSR now a constant factor the club must consider, there's never been a better time for Newcastle United to find cut-price deals.

One area we may have to strengthen next summer is our striker department, with Callum Wilson set to depart at the end of the season, as things stand.

With that in mind, it's interesting to see a familiar name linked with a potential move to St James' Park this week, and appears he would be a like-for-like Wilson replacement.

Newcastle favourites to secure free transfer?

According to Alan Nixon at The Sun, Newcastle United are in pole position to sign Dominic Calvert-Lewin on a free transfer next summer.

He reports that Toon chiefs hope to tempt the Everton striker a 'major contract offer', with a hefty wage packet likely to be proposed given the lack of transfer fee as he runs down his deal on Merseyside.

It's believed Fiorentina are also keen on the forward, but the player himself prefers to remain in the Premier League and would therefore favour a move to Newcastle.

The 27-year-old was tipped to sign back in June, with The Telegraph revealing that Eddie Howe is a long-term admirer of the 6ft 2' striker who has been linked with a move to Tyneside for a few years now.

 Calvert-Lewin would split opinion

On one hand, Calvert-Lewin can be seen as an experienced, budget-friendly option who could replace Wilson as our back-up option to Alexander Isak.

You won't get many top strikers prepared to play second fiddle in attack and most half-decent strikers cost £25m-plus, so Wilson and Calvert-Lewin in without any major outlay of money could free up funds to spend big on the right-wing and at centre-back.

That said, Calvert-Lewin is hardly prolific. With nine goals in his last 50 league outings and just two goals this term, could we rely on him to step in whenever Isak is injured?

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