Both Sidney Sam and Kevin-Prince Boateng have been indefinitely suspended by German side Schalke 04 - and Newcastle United are leading the race to snap up the controversial duo this summer. Schalke's sporting director Horst Heldt took the decision to effectively sack the pair following the 2-0 defeat at Koln last weekend that left Roberto di Matteo's side struggling in sixth place. Although German forward Sam and Ghanaian attacking-midfielder Boateng are undoubted talents, they are alleged to have caused serious off-field issues at Schalke - yet that may not deter Newcastle from attempting to snap them up. German newspaper Bild have linked the Magpies with the pair in recent months and it seems likely Newcastle will be one of the clubs queuing up for their signatures. In truth, Schalke have been looking to offload Boateng for some time now. The Gelsenkirchen outfit were frustrated by a picture of him smoking and drinking beer before a doping test in February 2014 - and then their patience almost snapped completely when he was sent home from the 2014 World Cup early for allegedly verbally abusing Ghana's manager. Boateng has scored twice during 15 caps for Ghana and he has netted seven goals in 54 appearances for Schalke this season. In total, the 28-year-old attacking-midfielder has returned 39 goals from 297 career appearances for Hertha Berlin, Tottenham Hotspur, Borussia Dortmund, Portsmouth, Genoa, AC Milan and Schalke. Five-cap German international Sam, meanwhile, has made just 14 appearances this season due to knee and hamstring injuries and he has failed to find the back of the net. However, in 203 career appearances in total - for Hamburg, Kaiserslautern, Bayer Leverkusen and Schalke - the 27-year-old has netted 51 times, an average of once every four games. Both players would add quality to Newcastle's squad - but would the huge baggage they bring make it worthwhile? For all the latest NUFC News, Views and Transfers make sure to follow WhatCultureNUFC on Twitter and Facebook.
NUFC editor for WhatCulture.com/NUFC. History graduate (University of Edinburgh) and NCTJ-trained journalist. I love sports, hopelessly following Newcastle United and Newcastle Falcons. My pastimes include watching and attending sports matches religiously, reading spy books and sampling ales.
