Magpies hitman a target for two Champions League chasing clubs

Liverpool and Tottenham are reportedly keeping tabs on Newcastle hitman Papiss Cisse after the Senegalese star lost his starting berth at the Sports Direct Arena.

Spurs are 2/1 shots to finish in the top-four, while Liverpool are huge underdogs at 17/2 to achieve the same feat, though the acquisition of a striker of proven Premier League pedigree would go a long way to improving their chances.

Cisse was electric in the second-half of last season following a £9m January move from Freiburg, amassing 12 goals in just 14 appearances at England’s top table. However, he has found the going tougher this time around, where he’s had to wait until late-October to open his Premier League account.

In addition to this, the form of compatriot Demba Ba has seen him muscled out of his role at the pinnacle of the Magpie’s front three and has had to make do with the role of impact substitute in recent weeks.

It would be an unquestionably rash move for Cisse to demand a move on the back of two games on the bench, yet if Alan Pardew doesn’t think he’s good enough and the Toon receive a monstrous offer they could be tempted to sell.

Liverpool would be a more likely suitor than Spurs, who have recently splashed out on Emmanuel Adebayor – a player very similar to Cisse in both stature and ability – but don’t use him.

The Reds have issues at the top end of the pitch where they’ve had to rely on youngsters to support Luis Suarez. Cisse’s strength and power make him the ideal candidate to spear-head their attack, while he possesses the technical prowess to suffice the criteria demanded by Brendan Rodgers’ football philosophy – something Andy Carroll lacked.

Whether they have the finances to make the move a possibility is unlikely, however, as it would take a sum of money akin to the one they wasted on procuring Carroll to prise Cisse away from Tyneside.

Should they take the gamble though, it stands a far better chance of success than the one that didn’t pay off when they last signed a Newcastle forward.

All odds and markets accurate as of publication’s time and date