Douglas:
In the chaos of the final hours of the transfer window, Newcastle United will stick to the smart recruitment plan that has served them well in the months since their transformational takeover.
The unexpected sale of Jonjo Shelvey to Nottingham Forest – a move that was sanctioned reluctantly by Eddie Howe despite his admission that he’d rather keep him at St James’ Park – is partly driven by a need to do some player trading to keep within the confines of financial fair play.
Shelvey’s sale creates space on the wage bill and some financial wiggle room. It also raises questions about whether Newcastle might deviate from a policy of sticking to rigorously scouted long-term targets, like Sven Botman and Anthony Gordon, rather than opportunistic picks.
It is why Howe admitted that while Newcastle will attempt to make a midfield signing – an area where an injury to a starter would leave them exposed – he offered no guarantees.
Chelsea’s Connor Gallagher – surplus to requirements at Stamford Bridge – and Ruben Loftus-Cheek are possible options to be followed up in the final hours of the transfer window.
“We didn’t plan to do anything else. Jonjo’s situation has come late in the window and that is not ideal for us,” Howe admitted on Monday.
“It wasn’t something we wanted to consider. It’s enabling us to look at what is out there, but there is no guarantee. If the window shuts, with Jonjo leaving, I would be happy.”
There is a clear blueprint being followed here: when Newcastle couldn’t extract Botman from Lille last January they returned in the summer. They missed Gordon in the summer but signed him on Sunday, a move Howe could hardly conceal his glee about.
“Direct, aggressive,” Howe said of his new charge on Monday. “I was really impressed by how he handled himself for such a big move.”
James Maddison, coming into the last year of his contract in the summer, is the next player Newcastle will set their sights on, having calculated a move from Leicester was unlikely this month.
They will complete the signing of Harrison Ashby, the promising young right-back from West Ham, on Monday. Karl Darlow, as reported by i last week, will feature in Tuesday’s League Cup semi-final second leg and then join Hull City on a six-month loan.
It has lacked the fireworks of a year ago and the £100m trolley dash to supplement their relegation fight, but it has felt sensible and ambitious.
“From my perspective, my ideal is to add a player in each window as it just freshens the group and is a new stimulus for everybody,” Howe said.
“You get that unique feeling when someone new walks through the door. He wants to impress his new teammate and they want to impress him.
“That’s only healthy for the group. That’s my ideal, you don’t want the group to go stale but of course it has to be the right player. With ever increasing fees it becomes more difficult. I’m really pleased with the business we have done so far.”
