Five Championship clubs are said to be pursuing out of favour Newcastle United striker Dwight Gayle. Birmingham City, Huddersfield Town, Preston, Reading and Millwall are all reportedly interested in signing the 32-year-old who's contract runs until June 2024.
Gayle is not part of Eddie Howe's first team plans, with the striker only playing 34 minutes last season. He did not travel with the rest of Newcastle first team squad to Austria for their double header against 1860 Munich and Mainz, instead training with the Magpies U23s.
Middlesbrough were another side said to be keen on signing Gayle this summer, but they cooled their interest in him after it was revealed chairman Steve Gibson was unwilling to pursue a deal for the striker. While Gayle does look set to depart Tyneside this summer, he has built up plenty of good will around the club and city.
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The 32-year-old played an instrumental part in helping Newcastle earn promotion to the Premier League back in the 2016/17 season, scoring 23 goals in 32 games. Recently, Howe told ChronicleLive's Lee Ryder that he wants to give Gayle an opportunity to decide where his future lies next season.
"I was very honest with him," Howe said. "I said from day one, from my perspective, I had a great relationship with him, and I love working with him.
"He was brilliant for the team last year, and because of all those things, he deserved the utmost respect and honesty from me about the how the future lay for him, and I wanted to give him the best chance to find his next home."
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