Former Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew was keen to bring striker Nakhi Wells to Tyneside.
That's according to former Magpies' chief scout Graham Carr, who admits he was shocked by the determination to recruit the former Bradford City forward.
Carr is credited with United's influx of talent in the early years of Mike Ashley's tenure on Tyneside, with the likes of Yohan Cabaye and Hatem Ben Arfa proving to be huge successes in black-and-white.
Appointed United manager in December 2010, Pardew was able to call upon the likes of Demba Ba, Papiss Cisse and Loic Remy up front during his four-year spell at St James' Park.
In an interview with the Mail Online, Carr stresses he had a good relationship with the former Southampton and West Ham boss. However, the 75-year-old admits the suggestion United should move for Wells was one that caught him off guard.
Carr told the Mail Online : "Alan had a new centre forward in mind and the analyst was ready with the clips. I'd been brought up on Jackie Milburn and watched Malcolm Macdonald, Alan Shearer. And there on the screen was (Bradford striker) Nahki Wells!
"I'm thinking, 'F***ing hell'. Sometimes, you have to think how the fans would react. That one never happened."
Bermuda international Wells left Bradford for Huddersfield Town, and then earned his Premier League move in 2017 when he completed a £5m deal to Burnley.
However, the 30-year-old struggled to impress at Turf Moor and following loan spells at Queens Park Rangers, the striker made the move to Bristol City in January.
