If a striker feels he needs some love and appreciation for his goals, and hasn’t been getting enough of it, then playing for Newcastle United at St James’ Park isn’t a bad way to go about things.
Bas Dost certainly needs that appreciation after a really difficult period at Sporting. With a good goalscoring record everywhere he’s been, and especially brilliant at the Lisbon club, Dost has been linked with a string of moves down the years.
Last summer it was reported in Portugal that Newcastle had offered €40m for the player, but Sporting knocked it back. The only way the footballer would be allowed to leave was for his €60m release clause.
Newcastle fans understandably questioned whether there club had offered such a fee, given it’s not exactly typical, but perhaps the most relevant aspect for now is how much Sporting valued their player at.
Now things are very different. Dost was one of several players recently attacked at Sporting’s training ground by a group of supporter-thugs. He needs hospital treatment and stitches, and a transfer is now considered likely.
Dutch newspaper AD report interest from Sevilla, which has surfaced in Spain in recent days, but they also believe Newcastle remain interested.
With some Sporting players rescinding their contracts for ‘just cause’, claiming they don’t feel safe, if Newcastle United offered anything like that €40m offer now then it’d surely have a great chance of being accepted.
And if Dost had a similar scoring record for Newcastle as he does for Sporting, then he’d become an instant hero and be able to banish the memories of the fan attack and all the trouble in Lisbon.
