Newcastle United appear to be out of the running for St. Etienne striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, as Borussia Dortmund swooped in and reportedly have a transfer deal in place. There is some chatter, however unconfirmed at this point, that the Toon knew that something like that would happen and didn't want to put all their eggs in one basket, so-to-speak.
There is some belief the Toon could make a run at someone like Dynamo Kyiv striker Brown Ideye, who's the same age as Aubameyang but likely cheaper, bringing the same quality to the pitch.
Lack of movement on PE-A, is down to #NUFC focusing on more affordable (+ equally impressive) Dynamo Kyiv striker Ideye Brown.
— Dan Ross (@Football_Dan) July 2, 2013
As it stands right now, there are no confirmed reports of interest, but Ideye's agent told The Daily Mail back in May that his client wanted to play in the English Premier League and preferred to play for Newcastle United.
"There has been a lot of interest from English clubs, but Newcastle would be Brown's preferred choice for a number of reasons," Hootan Ahmadi, Ideye's agent, told The Daily Mail back in May. "They have a good fan-base and play an attacking style of football. He has good knowledge of the club and of the Premier League. Brown would love to test himself at that level."
Ideye recently played three matches for his home Nigeria in the 2013 Confederations Cup, notching two assists. In 28 matches he scored 17 goals for his club, Dynamo Kyiv in the Ukraine's Premier Liga. Ideye also scored four goals in 10 appearances for the totality of the Champions League, including qualification.
Keep reading:
• NUFC chasing both Darren Bent and James Tomkins
• Newcastle United reported place £12 million bid on Andre-Pierre Gignac
• Hatem Ben Arfa and Newcastle hope to lock up new contract
• Newcastle United make a reported £12 million bid on Wilfried Bony