Newcastle spent much of the summer looking for a new Hugo Ekitike, but Eintracht Frankfurt believe William Osula can be the one for them.
The Bundesliga giants sold their star talent to Liverpool via the Magpies in July and have been looking for his replacement ever since.
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Frankfurt were keen to sign Osula, but Newcastle broke off loan talks after disagreements arose over a potential purchase commitment.
Eddie Howe expressed his delight at retaining the 22-year-old, calling him the “complete package” after a strong start to the season.
Osula has scored three goals in 14 appearances this season, with his only Premier League goal ironically coming in the 3-2 defeat to Liverpool, in which Ekitike also scored.
However, the Danish U21 international has only played in the top division once and has not played at all since November 2nd.
Aston Villa is interested in Osula
According to The Pitch Prospect, Aston Villa are now interested in Osula, who has now missed 18 games due to an ankle injury.
The Magpies could be tempted to cash in on Osula, reports The Pitch Prospect’s Alex Crook, who is also on the radar of clubs in Germany.
European football expert Andy Brassell told The Pitch Prospect.com in late December: “Obviously there has been Frankfurt interest in Osula for some time, ever since the sale of Ekitike in the summer.”
“They were hoping to get it over the line on deadline day, but that didn’t quite work out. And of course, at least partly because of his injury, Osula hasn’t played much since.”
“But when he played for Newcastle you always felt he could contribute.”
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“So you can understand why they want to bring him in, and you can understand why they think he could make a difference for them too.”
“I understand they have had an agreement with Osula for a few weeks now. It’s just a matter of getting Newcastle to agree a deal.”
“This guy has the talent to go all the way”
“I think Newcastle will be happy to capitalize on this,” Brassell continued. “They feel like they can make a really good profit.
“I spoke to Curtis Davies, who worked with him at Derby County when he first came to Newcastle, and I remember him saying: ‘This guy has the talent to go all the way.’
“It is tempting to say that Newcastle may not always have been able to develop players from the ground up in the past.”
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“I think if you look at Ivan Toney, it’s obviously a different era of Newcastle so you can’t really blame the current management.”
“But it wouldn’t surprise me if something similar happened and Osula actually went up a few levels after going somewhere else.”
“As far as his pace and his strength, if you add a few goals and some consistency to that, I think you’re away.”
“He has all the physical attributes that would make him successful. I think he could also be a possible replacement for Ekitike for Frankfurt.”
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Will Newcastle regret selling him?
Howe pursued Osula for three years before completing a £10million deal to bring him from Sheffield United in 2024.
His assistant manager Jason Tindall had recommended the striker following his time under Paul Heckingbottom at Bramall Lane in 2021.
On the risk of letting him go, Brassell told The Pitch Prospect: “As far as I know they’re looking at a little over double what they paid Sheffield United.”
“This is a significant investment for Eintracht Frankfurt and I don’t think you’ll get a sell-out for it.”
“So I think you bite the bullet and if he goes on and has success elsewhere, that’s one of the things you have to live with.”
“Considering the price Newcastle are asking, I think we have a good chance of developing and selling this guy, and if you’re willing to take the risk, so are we!”
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Howe left the door open to a possible Osula exit ahead of the club’s 2-0 win over Crystal Palace last weekend.
While the Toon boss claimed there was “no expectation” that Osula would leave, he added: “I think the only route we would consider would be his development and growth in terms of his playing career, but always with a view to him coming back to us.”