Newcastle's "Preferred Media Partner" Suspends Betting On Charlie Austin Signing

Betting has been suspended on Charlie Austin joining Newcastle United by the gambling wing of the Magpies' "preferred media partner", Sky Sports. On Thursday, Sky Bet - along with at least two other bookies - stopped taking money on the Queens Park Rangers forward moving to Tyneside during this window amid rumours that Newcastle had seen a bid accepted by the west London club. The long-protracted transfer saga of where the 26-year-old would end up this summer finally looks to be coming to an end, with Newcastle now firm favourites to acquire the forward - although as of yet it is unclear if QPR's £15 million asking price has actually been met, or whether a lower fee has been negotiated by the Magpies, or even if any bid at all has been launched.

The Magpies have been battling the likes of Chelsea, AFC Bournemouth, West Bromwich Albion, Southampton, Leicester City, Crystal Palace, West Ham United and Aston Villa for the forward€™s signature this summer following QPR€™s relegation to the Championship - but the west London club have insisted they want upwards of £15 million for the forward. Newcastle have been reluctant to match such a fee, amid concerns over previous knee and shoulder injuries the forward has had in the past, as well as the fact he has just a year left on his QPR deal. However, with the Magpies' £12.3 million move for Anderlecht forward Aleksandar Mitrovic dragging out for longer than expected, it seems the club may have acted up their interest in Austin. Austin was the fourth-top scorer in the Premier League in 2014-15 having bagged an impressive 18 goals despite playing for a side who finished bottom of the table and he has just a year left on his Loftus Road deal. Newcastle need to add firepower to their strikeforce because they managed just 40 Premier League goals throughout the entirety of the previous campaign - and top-scorer Papiss Cisse€™s future at the club is in doubt, meaning they will have just Ayoze Perez, Adam Armstrong and the goal-shy Emmanuel Riviere as forwards next year. They have turned their attention to the highly-coveted Austin, who will want to remain in the Premier League - and that cannot be with QPR next season following their relegation. Austin has scored 107 goals in 199 league games for Swindon, Burnley and QPR since the beginning of 2010. For all the latest NUFC News, Views and Transfers make sure to follow whatculture.com/NUFC on Twitter and Facebook.