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Islam Slimani’s disappointing Newcastle United career has come to a premature end after the striker had his appeal against the length of a three-match ban for violent conduct rejected.

The 29-year-old was retrospectively charged by the Football Association for kicking out at West Bromwich Albion defender Craig Dawson during the 1-0 defeat to the Baggies at St James’ Park on Saturday.

Though referee David Coote missed the incident at the time, the FA subsequently took action - and, while Slimani admitted the act, he appealed against the length of the suspension.

But the FA Independent Regulatory Commission (IRC), which convened on Thursday, consulted the footage of the incident and determined the automatic three-match suspension to be the correct punishment.

Slimani will therefore miss United’s final three games of the campaign, meaning he has played just 131 minutes in total during his three-month loan spell on Tyneside.

The Magpies paid Leicester City a £2million loan fee for the Algeria international, while they have also covered his roughly £80,000-per-week wages.

And, given that Slimani has played just four games for Newcastle , he has cost the Magpies more than £900,000 per appearance - and more than £3.5m in total.

It is unclear at this stage whether Slimani will remain on Tyneside to train for the next week-and-a-half, or return to parent club Leicester early, given that he is suspended for Newcastle’s matches against Watford on Saturday, Tottenham Hotspur next Wednesday, and Chelsea on Sunday week.

What does appear almost certain, however, is that Slimani will not wear the black-and-white stripes of Newcastle again, with Rafa Benitez set to seek alternative forward options this summer.

When Slimani joined the Magpies on transfer-deadline day, he was recruited as a last-resort option - with Benitez having failed to land any of his other targets.

Feyenoord striker Nicolai Jorgensen was sought by the Spaniard, but United were unwilling to meet the Eredivisie club’s £20m asking price, while other forwards such as Daniel Sturridge and Danny Ings were ahead of Slimani on Benitez’s wanted list.

Aleksandar Mitrovic is likely to be sold at the end of the season, with the Serbia international’s disciplinary issues having convinced Benitez that the forward does not have a Tyneside future.

Given the fact Slimani is 30 in June, would likely cost more than £20m to sign permanently, and has had fitness issues for the best part of two years, it seems highly unlikely Benitez will make a move for the Algerian this summer - with this latest suspension having all-but sealed the forward’s fate.

The 29-year-old had already missed six games since his arrival on Tyneside before this suspension - five due to a persistent thigh problem, and one because he was ineligible to play against parent club Leicester - but now he will head back to the King Power Stadium having made just one start for United, as well as three substitute appearances.

Benitez has made signing a striker a priority for the summer window, but it will almost certainly not be Slimani.

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