Newcastle's 28-Goal Target Given 48-Hour Deadline To Join

Newcastle United have given Aleksandar Mitrovic a 48-hour deadline to sign on the dotted line - otherwise the club will move on to other striking targets. The Magpies have had a £12.3 million bid accepted by Anderlecht for the 20-year-old forward, but he is stalling on a deal as he would prefer to play European football in 2015-16. With Porto only willing to stump up ‚10 million (£7.1 million), Mitrovic appears to have been backed into a corner - either he must accept Newcastle's offer within 48 hours (according to Dhnet.be), or remain in Belgium for another season.

Although Mitrovic is their primary striking target, Newcastle also have other irons in the fire - with the club still very much interested in Queens Park Rangers' Charlie Austin and Wolfsburg's Bas Dost - who they want to move on to swiftly, which is why they have demanded an answer from the Serbia interational. What€™s more, Ivica Mitrovic, the forward€™s father, has also placed some doubt over the transfer with some comments to Belgian media denying a move had been agreed. He told Het Nieuwsblad:

"There is nothing to it (yet). "To leave a big club like Anderlecht, all the pieces have to fit. "But we are not rushed. The time will come for my son."

Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Swansea City have also been linked to Mitrovic, while Porto are believed to have come up short in their final offer for the forward. Mitrovic has netted 44 goals in 90 matches for Anderlecht, and has a career total of 69 strikes from 158 games. A powerful and relatively-quick forward, Mitrovic has an eye for goal and he grabbed headlines when he scored Anderlecht€™s equaliser at the Emirates Stadium last November when the Belgian side came from three goals down to draw 3-3 against Arsenal in a Champions League group-stage match. Anderlecht paid Partizan Belgrade a club-record £4 million for the 11-cap Serbia international, who started his career at Teleoptik, back in August 2013 and he has gone on to become one of Europe€™s most sought-after forwards. In 2014-15 Mitrovic bagged 28 goals in 51 matches, including 20 in 37 Belgian Pro League appearances and three in the Champions League. For all the latest NUFC News, Views and Transfers make sure to follow whatculture.com/NUFC on Twitter and Facebook.