Newcastle Seeking Permanent Transfer of Aleksandar Mitrovic After Rejecting Multiple Offers

Newcastle United have stated they are looking to offload wantaway forward Aleksandar Mitrovic on a permanent basis only, having reportedly rejected a staggering 22 separate offers for the Serbian striker.

According to Football Insider, the 23-year-old has been the subject of fervent transfer speculation from Premier League rivals Brighton & Hove Albion, West Bromwich Albion as well as a host of clubs on the continent including French duo Bordeaux and Olympique Marseille, with loan offers from Turkey and Belgium also on the table.

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The Magpies, however, have thus far turned down all interest in the player for a short-term move away from the club, preferring to take the player off the books permanently.

With the Toon seemingly mired in a relegation scrap which could involve no less than nine or ten teams in the English top-flight come May, Mitrovic has been a peripheral figure at Newcastle, having played less than a full match in game time this term - 89 minutes in total over six games.

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Having fallen short of double figures in his last top-flight campaign with Newcastle two seasons ago, notching nine goals and four assists, Mitrovic has found himself out of favour under boss Rafa Benitez in recent months with both Dwight Gayle and misfiring Joselu preferred to the Serbian international marksman.

With the World Cup mere months away no less, the forward's place in Mladen Kristajic's squad for Russia could yet be in doubt, despite his 11 goals for the Eagles in 33 appearances. 

A move away could satisfy all parties involved then also, with the funds from any potential sale being used to bring in a replacement. So far however, the £14m price tag on the player's head has yet to sway any concrete interest, with less than two weeks of the January transfer window remaining.