It is over between Newcastle United and Alexander Isak. The Sweden international will reportedly move to Liverpool in the final hours of the window, getting the move he has desired the whole summer.

It leaves the Magpies in need of a new centre-forward, and the likes of Nicolas Jackson of Chelsea and Wolverhampton Wanderers star Jorgen Strand Larsen are two of their options.

However, in the final throes of the window, Eddie Howe’s side could target another option.

Newcastle’s latest centre-forward target

Despite moves for Jackson and Strand Larsen being a possibility, TBR Football reports that the Magpies have ‘had discussions’ to sign Paris Saint-Germain and France international striker Randal Kolo Muani.

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The French champions want a loan deal with an obligation to buy the player at this late stage. It was reported that a fee of £50m could be the fee Luis Enrique’s side ask for.

Newcastle’s top-flight rivals, Tottenham Hotspur, are also linked.

Why Kolo Muani would be a good signing

Despite struggling for regular minutes at PSG last term, Kolo Muani impressed on a loan spell at Juventus. His form for the Old Lady helped to raise his stock again after a tough time in Paris, after once being described as a “diamond” by football scout Antonio Mango.

Last term, the Frenchman, who is from Bondy, the same area as Kylian Mbappe, shone for the Serie A giants. In 22 appearances for the club, he found the back of the net ten times and assisted three goals. He also scored twice for PSG in minimal game time.

Kolo Muani shot to world fame after a successful 2022 World Cup campaign for France. Of course, Les Bleus fell just short of retaining their title after losing to Argentina in the final, but the striker, who donned the number 12 shirt for that competition, scored in the semi-final against Morocco and assisted in the final.

Well, there is certainly a case to be made that the Frenchman would be a better addition than both Strand Larsen and Jackson. The Wolves striker did outscore him last season, with 13 goals, but played almost double the number of games.

As for Chelsea striker Jackson, who saw a late loan move to Bayern Munich called off, he had similar success to Kolo Muani.

The Senegal star bagged 13 goals and assisted six for the Blues, but again, played far more than the 2022 World Cup star.

In terms of their minutes per goal ratio last season, Jackson averaged a goal every 224 minutes in the Premier League for Chelsea.

As for Strand Larsen, he scored one goal every 186 minutes on average in the English top flight. Both are higher than Kolo Muani’s tally of 151 minutes per goal, for both Juve and PSG.

Other underlying numbers suggest that Newcastle should prioritise the signing of Kolo Muani. For example, he is a better chance creator, averaging 1.3 key passes each game compared to 0.73 for Strand Larsen and 1.13 for Jackson per 90 minutes.

Goals

0.59

0.49

0.4

Goals per shot on target

0.42

0.42

0.29

Key passes

1.3

0.73

1.13

Take-ons completed

1.48

0.28

0.73

Ball recoveries

2.43

1.46

1.94

This is not a deal that would harm Newcastle financially this summer, given it would be a loan move with an obligation to buy next summer. Given Kolo Muani’s clinical nature in front of goal and how he brings others into the game, it is easy to see why this would be the best option for the Magpies.