The Magpies are on the verge of signing Anderlecht striker Aleksandar Mitrovic and are also said to be closing in on a move for Mbemba, with talks well down the line.
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Both Mitrovic and Mbemba were withdrawn from training yesterday, with Anderlecht officials expecting the duo to depart before the start of the new season.
At the Belgian giants, Mitrovic has managed an impressive 44 goals over two seasons and he will be hoping he can follow in the footsteps of some of Newcastle’s deadliest strikers over the years once he completes his move.
Strong, aggressive and dominant in the air, the 20-year-old is reminiscent of Andy Carroll, who briefly shone on Tyneside before making a £35m move to Liverpool.
Last term was even better, with his 27 goals helping Anderlecht finish third in Belgium’s Jupiler League, just three points adrift of champions Gent.
“They are getting minutes in and working hard”.
Such an arrangement is outlawed in England, but it is commonplace in a number of European countries and should enable Porto to match anything Newcastle put on the table.
Papiss Cisse is also keen to quit as he will not be offered a new contract and if Austin joins Mitrovic as a Newcastle player, he is also likely to be made available for transfer. And his level is constantly increasing.
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The 24-year-old Dutch midfielder signed with the Magpies from Eredivisie champions PSV Eindhoven for £14.5million on July 11 and has already received plenty of praise from fans following the 1-0 pre-season friendly win over Sacramento Republic on Saturday.
