Nottingham Forest have been dealt a blow in their quest to sign Newcastle United striker Dwight Gayle.
Magpies boss Steve Bruce has told Chronicle Live that he will be doing his utmost to keep the frontman at the club beyond January.
Forest will look to add a striker to their ranks when the window reopens and Gayle is thought to be on the shortlist of targets.
Saturday saw the Reds beaten 1-0 by Cardiff City in a game where Forest had over 30 shots at goal but only two which hit the target.
(Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
Lewis Grabban is the leading goalscorer in Sabri Lamouchi’s ranks. He has netted eight goals but can’t do it all on his own and the Reds need competition.
Rafa Mir is on loan from Wolves but is yet to score for the Reds.
The chances of signing proven Championship marksman Gayle now look to be slim, however.
Speaking after Newcastle’s 2-2 draw with Manchester City, Bruce remained defiant in his quest to keep the 29-year-old.
He told Chronicle Live: “I don’t want to let Dwight Gayle go. I made that pretty clear in the summer. How would I replace him?”
(Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
Bruce believes it would cost a fortune to bring in another striker in January and that is partly the reason he doesn’t want to let Gayle go.
The boss is determined not to lose his striker despite him not starting Gayle once during 2019/20.
He continued: “I wouldn’t want to let any of our good players go in January. I fought hard in the summer to keep him and that will be the case again.”
Nottingham Forest News view – Gayle update offers a reminder of the challenge facing the Reds
The January transfer window is always a difficult period in which to try and strengthen.
With Forest needing a striker in order to maintain their bid for a play-off place, the forthcoming one will be even more of a challenge.
The £40,000-a-week (Spotrac) ace might be off the agenda for now but Forest won’t have put all their eggs into one basket.
The summer recruitment was done with meticulous planning and the same should be expected with any January transfer targets.
The situation regarding Gayle may change in the next few weeks but for now, it looks like Forest will have to turn their attentions elsewhere.
(Photo by Serena Taylor/Newcastle United via Getty Images)
Signing the ex-West Brom loan star would have been interesting anyway. Lamouchi typically plays with one striker and there isn’t really any reason to warrant Grabban being dropped.
Competition is required and Gayle wouldn’t have fancied swapping the bench at Newcastle for the same spot at Forest.
The month of January certainly looks like being an interesting time for those of a Forest persuasion.