Adam Armstrong will be made available to loan by Southampton this summer, according to reports. Just one year after sealing a £15million move, the Newcastle United academy product is heading for the St Mary’s exit after an underwhelming debut campaign.
The Magpies were linked with a move for Armstrong last summer after his goalscoring heroics in the Championship. In 2020-21, the Chapel House native - who won the U20 World Cup with England in 2017 - bagged 28 goals for Rovers despite Tony Mowbray's side finishing mid-table.
A staggering 40% sell-on clause inserted into the forward's contract by Toon chiefs after his exit in 2018 gave Newcastle priority to buy the Geordie back. However, Armstrong signed for Southampton and has failed to replicate his form in the Premier League - bagging just twice last season.
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Mike Ashley preferred to offer Dwight Gayle a three-year deal than re-sign the 25-year-old as adequate cover to Callum Wilson. While offering the former an extension has proven costly, the decision to let Armstrong join the Saints has been justified.
Similar to Gayle, the former Toon youngster risks falling into the category of being a cut below Premier League level, but too good for the Championship. Ralph Hasenhuttl is keen to sign a new forward after Armando Broja - a Newcastle target - returned to Chelsea following his loan spell.
This casts Armstrong’s future into doubt as the Austrian had already lost patience in the forward towards the back end of the campaign. Since January 1, Armstrong only completed the full 90 minutes once and was an unused substitute for 12 of the final 17 games.
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