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Opinion: Sheffield Wednesday should go all out to sign 29 y/o striker this summer

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There could be an exodus of strikers at Sheffield Wednesday this summer, with Fraser Preston, Sam Winnall, Atdhe Nuhiu, Fernando Forestieri and Steven Fletcher all out of contract in the coming months. Connor Wickham will return to Crystal Palace when his loan is up too, so Garry Monk will be desperate for replacements in attack.

One player who should be on his radar is Dwight Gayle. Wednesday were linked with the 29-year-old in January but didn’t pursue him due to the financial outlay involved – a £10m asking price and £2.08m-a-year/£40k-per-week in wages. The Owls opted against a move in January, but they should consider returning for Gayle this summer as he’s had a hand in 126 career goals in 249 games.

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The 29-year-old joined Newcastle from Crystal Palace in 2016 and has gone on to make 84 appearances in all competitions, scoring 29 times and making nine assists. Gayle has been surplus to requirements at St. James’ Park in recent years, however, racking up only 387 minutes of football since May 2018.

He spent last season on loan at West Bromwich Albion as he wasn’t guaranteed playing time at Newcastle and has again struggled for games this campaign – Gayle has started only four league matches in 2019/20.

The 29-year-old found himself behind Joelinton in the pecking order and struggled for form due to the lack of games. Whether he’d be willing to join Wednesday on loan next season remains to be seen, however, as he’s sure to have a lot of clubs interested.

The Owls’ demise in 2020 may also put Gayle off making the switch – Wednesday are currently 15th in the Championship with 48 points from 37 games, having won just two games in three months. Nevertheless, Monk and his recruitment team should stop at nothing to bring Gayle to Hillsborough.

Read Crippy Cooke’s previous article

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Sports journalist who is an avid football fan, enjoys debunking transfer rumours, loves to write pieces about players out in the cold and takes a large amount of pride getting a predicted XI 100% correct.