3:47 Callum Wilson says he hopes to follow in the footsteps of Newcastle’s iconic strikers following his £20m transfer from Bournemouth
While Lewis (a 22-year-old Northern Ireland international full-back) and Fraser (a 26-year-old free transfer) are both deals that the club may have considered before, the case of £20m man Wilson is a lot more unusual.
At 28, and having suffered two serious knee injuries during his time at Bournemouth, the four-times capped England striker is not one the Newcastle owner would previously have taken a chance on, never mind made their third-highest paid transfer fee.
Wilson has in fact been linked with Newcastle a number of times in the past but a deal had never materialised.
But Bruce has managed to persuade Ashley that the best is still to come from Wilson, and that he will score the goals to take Newcastle back up into the top half of the league again.
0:37 Speaking just hours before the signing of Ryan Fraser, Wilson told Sky Sports News his former Bournemouth teammate would be a ‘great addition’
When I interviewed the England man just after signing his deal on Tuesday, the determination in both his voice and his eyes was clear.
Wilson was out running alone on the training pitches with the ink yet to dry on his contract. He is evidently excited to be on Tyneside and desperate to pay back his new manager’s faith – and quickly.
He also has a great record against West Ham, which he was keen to point out to me during our chat. Of course, Newcastle open their campaign at the London Stadium on Saturday night, live on Sky Sports.
The capture of Wilson, who will have little re-sale value when his contract ends in 2024, is in stark contrast to the marquee striker arrival last summer.
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A club-record £40m was splashed out on Brazilian striker Joelinton, who had never kicked a ball in the Premier League before.
Fast forward a year, and the 24-year-old has just two top-flight goals to his name. Joelinton’s time may yet come, but Bruce made the plea for players with Premier League experience – and that’s what he has got.
Even Rafa Benitez only managed to get Salomon Rondon on-loan, despite insisting to Ashley that the Venezuelan should be bought in a permanent deal. Benitez wasn’t slow to vent his frustration at being made to work with what he felt were his hands tied.
But Bruce has just got on with the job while charming Ashley in the background. He convinced him to sign 31-year-old Andy Carroll on Deadline Day last August, before also bringing in Spurs’ Danny Rose on-loan in January.
1:22 Northern Ireland manager Ian Baraclough says Jamal Lewis’ potential transfer to Newcastle is an exciting opportunity for the full-back
Wilson however is his biggest victory, with the club’s scouting department presenting other options to the man controlling the purse strings.
Fraser, Lewis and Jeff Hendrick are also players Bruce made clear he wanted to bring to the club. British and Irish-style players who are ready to walk into the first team without time to adjust.
He still has two loan deals to be creative with. Expect one to be used on a centre-back, while there is interest in young strikers Rhian Brewster and Eddie Nketiah at Liverpool and Arsenal respectively.
But the bulk of the club’s spending is over for this window, after a manic few days on Tyneside.
1:16 Sky Sports News reporter Keith Downie says Fraser took the weekend to consider his move to Newcastle and waited to see if Wilson signed, before committing to a five-year deal
And so to the takeover: this week’s triple signing has allowed Newcastle’s weary fans to smile once again after a summer of pain.
Sources close to Ashley are telling us he remains 100 per cent committed to bringing Amanda Staveley’s Saudi-backed consortium to the table again.
And while he is not shutting the door on anyone else, the only group that ever showed him the true colour of their money were PIF/PCP.
Despite spending £500,000 to look over the books, American Henry Mauriss never provided proof of funds and the Bellagraph Nova group never got past Ashley’s lawyers who filter those interested.
But Ashley hopes the club’s positivity in the transfer market this week will see Newcastle back on the up, and in turn reignite the Saudi interest, after they pulled the plug on their £340m takeover at the end of July.
If that doesn’t happen, he’s got a squad of players who are well placed to perform significantly better than they did last season, both in style and performance. Over to you, Steve…
Sourse: skysports.com
