Osula and Thuram
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After a misfiring season for Newcastle's expensive new strikers Nick Woltemade and Yoane Wissa, it was left to young maverick forward Will Osula to step up and demonstrate he could be the long-term answer to the Magpies' problem position.
Osula, 22, who signed from Sheffield United two years ago, only managed two goals in the entirety of his debut season on Tyneside - starting zero games in the Premier League. But patience seems to have paid off with the young Dane, who banged in five goals in seven games - all of which he started - after the final international break of the season.
Rightly, Osula's stock is now higher than ever ahead of the summer, and he will hope to start the new season as Newcastle's first-choice No 9.
But caution is required. Osula only played 811 minutes in the Premier League this season, scoring seven goals from an xG of 4.29. This is an impressive overperformance and certainly encouraging, but the question is whether that level of output can be maintained over time.
If it can, Osula might well be one of the best strikers about. If, however, it can't - where do Newcastle go from there?
Will Eddie Howe stick or twist on Osula's raw potential? Howe has insisted he is happy with his options, and the Newcastle hierarchy will no doubt want to keep the faith in Woltemade in particular, but with £69m coming in for Anthony Gordon, who could the Magpies target if that changes?
We used Machine Football's database to break down the best fits, and their pricetags, for Howe's system.
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Inter are a huge club. But while it may seem unlikely that a striker who has featured in two of the last four Champions League finals would consider trading Milan for the north-east, the lure of the Premier League remains great and suggestions from La Repubblica back in February are that Inter could look to offload some of their senior assets this summer after taking a revenue hit from their early Champions League exit at the hands of Bodo/Glimt.
Thuram has been remarkably consistent in the north of Italy since joining from Borussia Monchengladbach in 2023, scoring 13, 14 and 13 times again in his three seasons to date - in a 20-team league that recorded 922 goals overall this season, worse than even the Premier League's nadir of 931 in the 2006-07 season.
The Frenchman, son of legendary World Cup winner Lilian Thuram, cuts an imposing figure at 6ft 3in and appropriately sits just outside the top 5% of strikers globally for aerial finishing.
Thuram is also blessed with remarkable dribbling ability, in the 90th percentile of all players globally and in the top 0.1% for attack positioning and finishing.
Signing Thuram, whose Machine Football transfer value is estimated at £58m, would also be a relatively low-risk move given the minimal estimated finishing drop-off for players moving to the Premier League from Serie A, compared to other European leagues.
Machine Football's weightings suggest that forwards arriving from the Italian top flight experience the smallest regression when moving to the Premier League.
Serie A strikers tend to adapt better to the Premier League than strikers from other European leagues
Serie A strikers tend to adapt better to the Premier League than strikers from other European leagues(Image: Machine Football)
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If he is available, though, Newcastle will no doubt face competition for his signature. Howe would not want a repeat of last summer when several key targets opted to join rival Premier League clubs
Sporting's Colombian striker Luis Suarez has rattled 28 goals in the Portuguese top flight and tormented defences in the Champions League this season.
Like Thuram, he is 28 years old, and only signed for Sporting last summer as Viktor Gyokeres' replacement - making a deal immediately that bit more difficult.
Despite Machine Football estimating his transfer market value at around £42m, Suarez has a reported €70million (£60.6m) release clause. He also has unfinished business in England that could tempt him back to the Premier League. He spent three years on Watford's books from 2017 to 2020, but never made an appearance for the Hornets, eventually rejoining his previous club, Granada.
Machine Football rank Suarez in the top 1% of strikers for finishing ability and attack contribution, with his positioning also in the top 5% of strikers globally.
Suarez also created 13 big chances in Portugal's top flight this season, showing strong link-up play, and scored twice as Sporting shocked PSG in the league phase of the Champions League.
Outside of Osula - who, again, hasn't exactly got the largest pool of data to go off - Suarez contributes the most in attack of any of these players featured here, including our final option.
Mikautadze's dribbling ability is a standout attribute of the Georgian striker
Mikautadze's dribbling ability is a standout attribute of the Georgian striker(Image: Machine Football)
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Probably the biggest unknown quantity on this list, Georgian striker Mikautadze nevertheless shows up as a close match to Osula's attributes in Machine Football's database.
He scored as Villarreal thrashed Atletico Madrid 5-1 in the final game of their LaLiga season last weekend, and has been a reliable source of goals for the Spanish side - scoring 13 from 32 games, just 23 of which were starts.
Mikautadze is 25 and has overperformed his xG in each of the last three seasons - which bodes very well for a player who could be about to enter his prime.
Having signed from Lyon for €30million (£26m) just last year, it seems questionable if Villarreal would be willing to sell - although his Machine Football estimated transfer value is currently £43m. Nevertheless, if he is able to maintain or even improve his level of performance, Mikautadze could be a serious option for Premier League clubs next summer if not this time around.
He has scored 23 goals in 43 appearances for the Georgian national team, a frankly brilliant record for a side ranked 72nd in the world and one that didn't qualify for this summer's World Cup.
Players moving to the Premier League from LaLiga typically see a relatively small regression in their finishing numbers of around 14% in their first season, which would hopefully make any adaptation period for Mikautadze somewhat smoother.
Mikautadze could be a strong fit for Newcastle's playing style
Mikautadze could be a strong fit for Newcastle's playing style (Image: Machine Football)
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Using Machine Football's cohesion model, Mikautadze actually looks a better fit for Newcastle than any of their current options, increasing the team's overall cohesion rating by five.
According to the model, Mikautadze would be predicted to link up particularly effectively with Harvey Barnes, who may well be the Magpies' first choice on the left next season if Anthony Gordon departs - as is now set to happen.
Yoane Wissa feels the most likely to leave if any, having failed to make any sort of an impact since joining for £55million from Brentford.
Woltemade is surely worth another chance. Machine Football data shows the average Bundesliga player experiences a 25% regression in finishing data when moving to the Premier League. So Woltemade should have scored around nine goals this season having scored 12 for Stuttgart last season.
In reality, Woltemade has scored eight. His sharp downturn in form after an early impact perhaps exacerbated the reaction to what should be viewed as a normal season for a relatively young striker adapting to English football.
But time is on Woltemade's side and, with the support of a freshly-firing Osula, the most likely scenario is that the Magpies stick to their guns in the hope that the German improves next season.
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