Newcastle Striker Had Opportunity to Sign For Hamburg Before Joining Fulham on Deadline Day

On loan Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic reportedly could have joined Hamburg on deadline day, but for their board blocking the move, according to reports in Germany. 

Fulham secured the services of the Serbian after a move back to former club Anderlecht fell through on deadline day, allowing the Championship club to move for his services. He has since scored seven goals in eight outings, as the Cottagers move closer to securing a playoff place at the end of the season. 

According to German outlet Sport Bild, a loan fee of €750,000 was agreed between the player's parent club, Newcastle and Hamburg, only for the club's board to not respond any further, and to 'forget' about the deal. 

Tensions between Hamburg's board and their then manager Bernd Hollerbach were high, and the coach eventually lost his job earlier this month, after only seven games in charge of the club. 

Mitrovic arrived in England when he joined Newcastle from Belgian club Anderlecht in the summer of 2015, the 23-year-old scored 17 goals in 72 games for the Toon, and was limited to just six Premier League appearances in the first half of the season. 

Newcastle manager Rafa Benitez has revealed that a decision on the Serbian international's future at the club will be made when he returns from his loan spell at the end of the season. 

The Hamburg board may now regret the decision to block the move given the recent goalscoring form of Mitrovic, and the fact that they are fighting relegation from the Bundesliga. 

The second bottom Bundesliga club have also failed to score in their last three games, most recently suffering a 6-0 away defeat to Bayern Munich.