According to reports on French media outlet L'Equipe, West Bromwich Albion and Premier League rivals Crystal Palace have both made enquiries for Angers striker Karl Toko Ekambi.

Both teams haven't had a centre-forward scoring regularly this season, with the Eagles' Christian Benteke only netting his first top flight goal of the campaign in the win against Leicester City last week.

While Ekambi is already enjoying the best season of his career for the French side, they still lie second-bottom of Ligue 1 and won't want to lose their talisman during the January transfer window.

However, if the Baggies – managed by Alan Pardew – and Palace push hard for the 25-year-old then he could be moving to England sooner rather than later.

Meanwhile, Newcastle United have strikers like Dwight Gayle, Joselu and Aleksandar Mitrovic in their squad, but none of them have brought the consistent goal threat that manager Rafa Benitez would have been looking for.

The Magpies slipped into the relegation zone after taking just one point out of a possible 27, and the Spanish boss will already be looking at options to strengthen his squad.

A new striker may be a priority and bringing Ekambi to St James' Park could prove to be a shrewd move.

Here are three reasons Newcastle must hijack West Brom's bid to sign the attacker…

Goals

While Angers have been struggling at the wrong end of the Ligue 1 table, there is no doubt that Ekambi has been enjoying a fine season from a personal point of view.

The 25-year-old has scored nine of their 21 top flight goals, as well as providing assists for three more, and he has already beaten his tally of eight from the previous campaign.

Meanwhile, Newcastle have struggled to find their own talisman to score regularly this term, and bringing the Cameroon international to St James' Park in January could solve that issue.

Versatility

As well as being able to play as an effective out-and-out centre-forward, Ekambi has also played on both wings – even scoring twice from the right against Dijon on Wednesday night.

That versatility could prove to be an attractive option for Rafa Benitez, who will know that the 25-year-old can bring a real goal threat even if he starts out wide for the Magpies.

Whether he plays on the flanks or through the middle, the fact that the Cameroon international has successfully completed 31 of the 70 dribbles he has attempted, according to WhoScored.com, also shows that he can prove to be a real thorn in the side of defenders on occasions when he runs at them.

Price tag

Having sold Jonathan Kodjia and Famara Diedhiou to Bristol City for £3.25m and £5.3m respectively over the course of the past couple of years, Angers may be looking for a similar amount to what they received for the latter if they are to agree to sell Ekambi in January.

If the 25-year-old was to cost £6m for example, that is certainly a more than affordable fee for Newcastle and could prove to be a very good deal given his recent goalscoring record.

Benitez is currently unsure about his budget next month because of the continued takeover talk, but bringing Ekambi to St James' Park would allow the Spaniard to use the rest of the money he has on other parts of his struggling team.

Do you agree, Newcastle fans? Let us know below.