The final whistle had barely sounded at St James’ Park on Sunday evening before Eddie Howe was talking to the media about the transfer window.
“Speed is key for us and I have reiterated that many times internally…we have to be dynamic and ready to conclude things very quicky because good players don’t hang around for long”, he said.
This is a marked shift in tone from Howe’s comments before previous windows where he was sounding caution about PSR and attempting to dampen down expectation. He knew the club’s financial situation was precarious 12 months ago, and he had also accepted prior to the last two January windows that there would be limited funds available for reinforcements.
One of the unique things about Howe is he works with what he has without complaining (in public at least), and he focuses his attention on what is within his control; the players in his current squad that he can improve.
Newcastle took a risk in football terms last summer and in January by not strengthening the first team, but it was a calculated gamble which has paid off by the finest of fine margins. Now it means that, instead of having to raise funds before the June deadline, the Magpies are in a position of strength heading into a critical window of squad planning ahead of another Champions League campaign.
Newcastle should be able to take advantage of some rivals’ financial predicament before the end of June, as Nottingham Forest and Brighton did to them twelve months ago. Signing Marc Guehi last summer or signing anybody that was available in January (as arguably Aston Villa did by signing Donyell Malen) would have hamstrung the upcoming window and reduced options.
Paul Mitchell’s surprise arrival last summer was one of a number of events that contributed to a general feeling of upheaval and chaos. There were clear power dynamic problems initially, and Howe felt under threat after losing key allies Staveley and Ghodoussi. He made his unhappiness clear at the pre-season training camp in Germany.
The timing of Mitchell’s imminent departure after less than twelve months in the job is a shock and it remains to be seen what impact this will have on the upcoming transfer window. Howe’s position has been strengthened by another outstanding over-achievement on the pitch. If this was a power struggle there was only going to be one winner. It is unusual in 2025 for a football manager to have so much power across all facets of the club operations, but then Howe is an unusual manager and is more responsible than any other individual for the success of the last three years. He has worked for and earned his position of influence at the club.
The important thing in the short term is that Mitchell’s exit doesn’t impact the transfer window. In the longer term, if Newcastle want to pursue a Director of Football model, the appointment has to be someone Howe can work with. Twice now Newcastle have had people in the job who were brought in above Howe and twice it hasn’t worked out with murmurings of relationship problems.
With regard to the squad, Howe has been less assertive than previous when talking about potential departures. He’s offered no guarantees that the likes of Callum Wilson or Sean Longstaff will be around next season.
While he will never publicly trash his players or tout them for sale, Howe knows that the squad needs turnover and a quality injection to be able to handle the demands of the upcoming campaign. It won’t be a surprise to see the aforementioned Wilson and Longstaff depart as well as players who have struggled to make an impact in the last few seasons such as Joe Willock and Matt Targett.
Significant player sales (Longstaff and Willock would be expected to raise in the region of £25 – 30m combined) would add to the already strong financial position Newcastle are in this summer and provide more leeway for reinforcements.
Those old claims from detractors that Howe isn’t ‘ruthless’ enough will be consigned to the dustbin of history this summer, as will the notion he only wants to sign players from Bournemouth.
More words from Howe: “It’s a window we have to be active in and I’m sure we will be…we haven’t recruited strongly in three windows, and I think eventually that catches up with you…it’s going to be a big transfer window for us.”
There is not a lot of room for interpretation here. It is a clear message to the hierarchy that Howe is expecting and demanding support and backing this summer. Howe thinks carefully about what he says publicly and will know that these words could come back to haunt him come September if the squad is left with glaring holes again.
Usually he would straight-bat questions about transfers but this time he has gone all in. He has the goodwill and currency among supporters (as he should and surely does among the hierarchy) to be given what he needs to plot the next phase of this project. The key objective for next season must be Champions League qualification again
The first transfer window this summer opens on 1 June and closes on 10 June due to the FIFA Club World Cup. The window then re-opens on 16 June which provides a two-week stretch before the end of June deadline for clubs that need to raise cash urgently before the new financial reporting period starts on 1 July. Then the window officially shuts nine weeks later on 1 September.
Newcastle are being heavily linked with a number of players who they should be able to wrap up relatively quick deals for. Espanyol goalkeeper Joan Garcia appears to be an attractive option with a £21m release clause.
Liam Delap will have options but reportedly wants to get his future sorted in that first early-June window before he goas away with England U21s. His £30m release clause looks good value for a 22-year-old with decent experience already, and it would be a coup if he can be persuaded to choose the Magpies ahead of other clubs where he won’t be competing with one of the world’s best strikers.
Newcastle could rekindle interest in Aston Villa’s Jacob Ramsey before the PSR cut off given, as a Villa academy graduate, he would represent a pure profit sale, as would Tyler Dibling of Southampton who the Magpies have tracked previously.
Regardless of the identity of the signings, tying up some early deals as Howe has asked for would allow the club to focus on some of the more marquee signings that appear on the agenda this summer (right sided attacker / winger and a young, mobile centre-back), as well as enabling Howe to have a full pre-season working with some new players. There should also be scope to add some younger project type players and maybe some more experienced squad players to replace any departures.
The last few transfer windows have been difficult for Newcastle, and frustrating for fans deprived of the dopamine hit of new signings, but if we follow Howe’s lead and trust his confidence and assuredness this time around, the next few months could be very exciting and transformational for Newcastle United. A golden opportunity to set the club’s course for the years to come.
HWTL!
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