2017-18 Newcastle United player review: Islam Slimani

After arriving at Newcastle United, Islam Slimani had a very little impact on loan.

Desperate to add a striker, Newcastle United brought in Islam Slimani on loan from Leicester City. Unfortunately, he didn’t help the striking woes and ended his stint suspended.

2017-18 stats: Four appearances, one start, one assist

Roy Emanuel

While Martin Dubravka’s loan was productive, Islam Slimani’s stay on Tyneside was a true disaster. Battling injuries when he arrived at St. James’ Park, the striker made four appearances for the Toon and did not score a goal. Instead of being the forward that Newcastle needed, Slimani became the player that could not contribute.

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Durim Halimi

Newcastle experienced some negative moments this season, but the worst move the club made was signing Islam Slimani on loan. The Algerian striker barely played for the club and when he did he was ineffective. In simple terms, Slimani was a waste of time and money for Newcastle. The signing of Slimani on loan served as a lesson that Newcastle must be cautious and strategic when pursuing a striker this summer.

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Carson A. Merk

I was optimistic about Slimani arriving at Tyneside. He’s a strong, powerful player that I thought could bring some of the aggressiveness we got from Aleksandar Mitrovic. Instead, we got a player that was more injured than anticipated and a dud when he finally appeared. He made a bonehead decision in his final match in a Magpies’ kit and was rightfully banned for the duration of his loan.

There is no circumstance where I would want Newcastle United to bring him back and there’s no indication they have any interest in doing so.

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Next: Since leaving Newcastle United...Aaron Hughes

Declan Ryan

Signing Slimani from Leicester on loan in January was a high risk, high reward move for Newcastle that didn’t pan out for either party. The Algerian arrived carrying an injury and it took until the end of March for him to play his first game for the club, at which point Newcastle were largely safe from relegation. Slimani is a very talented striker, but he’s struggled to find his feet in the Premier League, and truthfully he doesn’t suit the way both Leicester or Newcastle want to play. A big, strong presence up front with excellent heading ability, there’s no doubt many teams would love to have a player of his caliber, but Newcastle should look to spend their money elsewhere in the summer.

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