Soccer Football - Premier League - Brentford v Brighton & Hove Albion - GTech Community Stadium, London, Britain - April 19, 2025 Brentford's Yoane Wissa reacts during the warm up before the match Action Images via Reuters/Peter Cziborra EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NO USE WITH UNAUTHORIZED AUDIO, VIDEO, DATA, FIXTURE LISTS, CLUB/LEAGUE LOGOS OR 'LIVE' SERVICES. ONLINE IN-MATCH USE LIMITED TO 120 IMAGES, NO VIDEO EMULATION. NO USE IN BETTING, GAMES OR SINGLE CLUB/LEAGUE/PLAYER PUBLICATIONS. PLEASE CONTACT YOUR ACCOUNT REPRESENTATIVE FOR FURTHER DETAILS..
Newcastle United have been strongly linked with a move for Brentford striker Yoane Wissa all summer, but their pursuit has taken another blow.
The Magpies are in the market for a new striker following the departure of stalwart Callum Wilson, and the ongoing uncertainty surrounding Alexander Isak has further heightened the urgency to bring in a new centre-forward.
It has been a summer full of near-misses for the Tynesiders, with opportunities to sign Hugo Ekitike, Joao Pedro and Benjamin Sesko all slipping away as the players opted to join other Premier League clubs.
Like Isak, Wissa has expressed a strong desire to leave the Bees this summer to join Newcastle, and has acted on this by refusing to take part in any of Brentford’s pre-season fixtures.
Earlier this week, reports suggested Brentford were in advanced talks to sign Stade Rennais striker Arnaud Kalimuendo, which would have given Newcastle hope of securing Wissa’s signature before the window closes.
However, this morning Fabrizio Romano poured cold water on Brentford’s potential deal, taking to X to confirm that Nottingham Forest have made an offer to sign Kalimuendo.
The Italian transfer insider revealed:
“Nottingham Forest have sent formal €30m [£26m] bid to sign Arnaud Kalimuendo from Rennes.”
“Negotiations underway with #NFFC.”
Will Newcastle Sign Yoane Wissa?
There is no doubt that Wissa would be a hugely valuable asset to Newcastle this season, as Eddie Howe faces the challenge of not only pursuing domestic success but also competing in the Champions League.
Newcastle have ambitions of becoming an established presence in Europe’s elite competition every season.
However, this will be incredibly difficult if they cannot build a high-quality squad with sufficient depth to allow Howe to manage their congested fixture schedule with reliable rotation.
As a result, regardless of what happens with Isak in the remaining weeks of the window, it would be wise to exhaust every option to get a deal for Wissa over the line.
Brentford, however, are in a similar position to Newcastle following Bryan Mbeumo’s move to Manchester United.
They too need reinforcements in attack before they can consider allowing any more departures, and this Kalimuendo blow won’t help either club in their pursuit to strengthen before the deadline.
With all this in mind, it will be interesting to see if there is still a possibility of signing Wissa this summer, as Newcastle are running out of time to strengthen their squad with the Premier League returning tomorrow.
About the Author
