NUFC Transfer Rumours

[DC Magpie]

5 hours ago, John P said:

Didn't the club ask Thiaw in his first interview how much of a factor CL football was and his answer was basically that he wasn't that bothered?

 

Less wear and tear and hence less chance of injury is one way I'd look at it as a player. But if you've got a bonus written into your contract for qualifying/playing in Europe and you miss out that, I think that would only happen once for most "elite" players.

[lovejoy]

Vlahovic linked again by the italian press.

 

He has been linked pretty much every window since the takeover im sure. Bizarre.

[500bhp]

57 minutes ago, timeEd32 said:

 

When I say no money I mean PSR headroom. By some accounts Ashworth's plan was to sell Joelinton (and/or there was a strong feeling that a big bid would come in for Bruno that June). Either way, everything since then goes back to the amount we spent in summer 2023 combined with a lack of a plan to balance the books. That was the fork in the road moment, more so than last summer IMO. The saving grace in all of it is we won a trophy and qualified for the CL, but you can trace every single thing since back to then -- Anderson, Gordon's head turning, Staveley out, Mitchell in, Guehi, Isak, 18 months of no incomings, etc. That's why the blame game for me starts with Eales and PIF, not the manager.

 

Re the last sentence I think its a bit more complex than that. We went what, 3 or 4 windows without signing a first team player. That was our choice as a club/manager because there was another option available which we didn't choose which would have allowed Anderson and maybe Minteh to stay. We could have player traded our was around the PSR deficit prior to that summer. I'm sure Villa would have done that in our position. From memory (its been a few years 😁) we were a CL side then and some of our players were linked elsewhere. Wilson to Chelsea for £18m, Trippier to Munich or Saudi, plus likes of Almiron and Longstaff were being linked away and they were at peak value then, scoring in CL and finishing 4th. But the manager chose not to sell when there reportably were opportunities to do so.

 

Of course its all history now and we'll never know if Howe was aware of the PSR deficit and instead chose not to trade our way out of it.

 

The point I'm trying to make is that it wasn't totally PSR restrictions which made us go 3-4 windows without a signing, it was our strategy of not player trading around it - and I dont class selling Anderson and Minteh at 1pm on 30th June as player trading. That was a panic fire sale. 

[Menace]

25 minutes ago, lovejoy said:

Vlahovic linked again by the italian press.

 

He has been linked pretty much every window since the takeover im sure. Bizarre.

 

I think the Italian media still think we are the "the world's richest club"  and haven't got the memo!

[KingArthur]

1 hour ago, Kanj said:

 

We always have money, we didn't have PSR head room. Which is only our issue when you think we historically had no sellable assets. The first time that became untrue was likely the summer after our first CL campaign. Joelinton, Gordon, Isak, etc.  

 

Guehi is the perfect example; player absolutely keen on coming up and we haggled over 5-10m and never got him. Trafford another, we haggled over some nominal fee when City had no desire to sign him as they had Ederson and that other fella and we still didn't get it done as Mitchell was playing hard balll, angry over inheriting Vlach and pissed off Trafford's parent club. We should have signed Ekitke the first season he completed at Frankfurt when he was on bloody nobody's radar, and instead we did nothing and sold nobody to keep the churn. 

Was Guehi ”absolutely keen on coming up”? 
 

we tried to sign Ekitike once, and he refused?

[cubaricho]

20 minutes ago, 500bhp said:

player traded

Ah the mythical player trading that happens every summer.  

[TRon]

13 minutes ago, KingArthur said:

Was Guehi ”absolutely keen on coming up”? 
 

we tried to sign Ekitike once, and he refused?

 

Pretty sure Ekitike knocked us back at least twice, might even have been three times. He really only saw us as a last resort. 

[gbandit]

2 minutes ago, TRon said:

 

Pretty sure Ekitike knocked us back at least twice, might even have been three times. He really only saw us as a last resort. 

It was three times 

[Curva Sud Milano]

40 minutes ago, Menace said:

 

I think the Italian media still think we are the "the world's richest club"  and haven't got the memo!

 

A short article that examines your situation and raises some doubts about the PIF's new strategy... doubts that, I believe, are understandable.

https://www.rivistaundici.com/2026/06/08/newcastle-futuro-calciomercato/

[Curva Sud Milano]

Newcastle is still the richest club in the world, but it has decided to focus on youth and let go of players who ask to be sold.

 

Will focusing solely on young players, selling the big names, be enough to become "the best in the world by 2030"?

 

It's not a U-turn, but it's certainly a deviation from the path of mega-spending. No more Tonalis, Isaks, or Woltemades: Newcastle's future will be based on different transfer market parameters. Spending less, scouring youth systems around the world for the most promising talents, and selling on the most valuable players without too many regrets. The symbol of the future? The purchase of Ewen Jaouen, a 20-year-old goalkeeper the Magpies will acquire from Rouen for around €20 million. A small side note: so far, he's only played in Ligue 2 and has very little top-level experience to justify such a price. Yet Newcastle is confident they've pulled off a major coup. And the same goes for many other reinforcements—already secured or in the running—young and relatively unknown. It's a strategy with significant risk, especially considering that with their current squad, the Bianconeri finished the Premier League season in a rather disappointing 12th place. However, in these first days of the transfer window, Anthony Gordon has already been sold to Barcelona for over €80 million. Sandro Tonali, the Telegraph explains in this article, is also on the list of potential departures, but anyone wanting to land him will have to shell out at least €100 million—and it won't be easy to budge at these prices. In both cases, Newcastle have no intention of replacing their best players with established additions of the same caliber. And the transfer targets set by management raise several question marks. A few examples? Victor Muñoz, a 2003-born striker currently playing for Osasuna, is highly sought after. Zadok Yohanna, an 18-year-old winger from Aik Solna, was also being closely followed before Brighton arrived and crushed the competition. Meanwhile, in midfield, especially if Tonali or Willock were to leave, Newcastle would opt for Lamine Camara: a 22-year-old from Metz, with some experience at Monaco. None of them would cost more than €40 million, half of what they earned from Gordon's sale. Of course, these are still significant expenses, in absolute terms. But not by today's Premier League standards, nor given what Newcastle itself has demonstrated in recent seasons, displaying virtually limitless resources and ambitions: according to club officials, the goal is to become "the best in the world by 2030," without missing out on Champions League qualification. It's clear that following up on certain announcements by building a team with no experience presents a significant risk: even by identifying the right technical prospects, their potential must be cultivated over time, with all the stages that a player's career requires. Being immediately ready for the European assault could prove an unsustainable task, especially in the short term. And it seems Newcastle's footballing future has fallen entirely into the hands of their esteemed scouts: rather than buying current players, they're buying those who could become them. A fascinating challenge, also in terms of creating lasting technical and economic value. And in some ways, it mirrors the footballing performance of the Public Investment Fund, the Saudi Arabian sovereign wealth fund that owns the Magpies and which has recently scaled back its overwhelming financial commitment to the world of sport. This isn't a matter of demobilization, the Saudis have repeatedly warned, but of more prudent management of their assets—especially since sustaining the irrational pace of the CR7 season, frankly, would have been impossible in the long run even with all the oil in the world. The Saudi Pro League itself has adopted this approach, more focused on the long term and the development of young talent. Newcastle appears to be no exception. The question remains: will they be able to do it?

 

 

Edited 4 hours ago by Curva Sud Milano

[The College Dropout]

1 hour ago, Kanj said:

 

We should have signed Joao Pedro the same season we signed Isak and there are countless examples of our inaction (via whatever PSR or internal struggles of power) that hindered the policy. The issue is once we opened up the flood gates we failed dramatically on Wissa and Elanga. Just imagine a world where Rayan came in as our RW and Panichelli as a potential future CF as gambled wonderkid signings and we then signed DCL on a free as the experienced CF with PL experience and not spent money on Woltemade. We'd have spent a fraction of the money. Perhaps we also go after Akliouche who was already in the mix for what could be a big move this last summer, but it's this summer. 

The season Wilson scored 18 and for us shot us into the CL?

 

In hindsight we should’ve been back in for Etikite after that 18 goal season but that’s perfect hindsight.  
 

I wasn’t for the DCL signing but it was a better route than the money spent on Woltemade and Wissa.  
 

Akliouche is another I fear we’ve waited too long. 
 

We need to get back to nicing decisively and early. 

[The College Dropout]

Guehi would’ve joined had we put up the money.  
 

After the PSR issues we’ve started quibbling over small margins. Which led to missing out on Trafford and Guehi.  
 

If we’re convinced - we should pay that premium.  We did that for a lot of the others.  It takes a lot of conviction to pay £32m for a 19yo with 12 professional appearances.  Or £40m for a 21-yo RB coming off 1 PL season and an ACL.  We’ve not had conviction since.  Played it safer. Not paid premium for possible future star players.  
 

I don’t count Woltemade because I don’t think he was high on our list. 

[cannybagoftudor]

9 minutes ago, Curva Sud Milano said:

Newcastle is still the richest club in the world, but it has decided to focus on youth and let go of players who ask to be sold.

 

Will focusing solely on young players, selling the big names, be enough to become "the best in the world by 2030"?

 

It's not a U-turn, but it's certainly a deviation from the path of mega-spending. No more Tonalis, Isaks, or Woltemades: Newcastle's future will be based on different transfer market parameters. Spending less, scouring youth systems around the world for the most promising talents, and selling on the most valuable players without too many regrets. The symbol of the future? The purchase of Ewen Jaouen, a 20-year-old goalkeeper the Magpies will acquire from Rouen for around €20 million. A small side note: so far, he's only played in Ligue 2 and has very little top-level experience to justify such a price. Yet Newcastle is confident they've pulled off a major coup. And the same goes for many other reinforcements—already secured or in the running—young and relatively unknown. It's a strategy with significant risk, especially considering that with their current squad, the Bianconeri finished the Premier League season in a rather disappointing 12th place. However, in these first days of the transfer window, Anthony Gordon has already been sold to Barcelona for over €80 million. Sandro Tonali, the Telegraph explains in this article, is also on the list of potential departures, but anyone wanting to land him will have to shell out at least €100 million—and it won't be easy to budge at these prices. In both cases, Newcastle have no intention of replacing their best players with established additions of the same caliber. And the transfer targets set by management raise several question marks. A few examples? Victor Muñoz, a 2003-born striker currently playing for Osasuna, is highly sought after. Zadok Yohanna, an 18-year-old winger from Aik Solna, was also being closely followed before Brighton arrived and crushed the competition. Meanwhile, in midfield, especially if Tonali or Willock were to leave, Newcastle would opt for Lamine Camara: a 22-year-old from Metz, with some experience at Monaco. None of them would cost more than €40 million, half of what they earned from Gordon's sale. Of course, these are still significant expenses, in absolute terms. But not by today's Premier League standards, nor given what Newcastle itself has demonstrated in recent seasons, displaying virtually limitless resources and ambitions: according to club officials, the goal is to become "the best in the world by 2030," without missing out on Champions League qualification. It's clear that following up on certain announcements by building a team with no experience presents a significant risk: even by identifying the right technical prospects, their potential must be cultivated over time, with all the stages that a player's career requires. Being immediately ready for the European assault could prove an unsustainable task, especially in the short term. And it seems Newcastle's footballing future has fallen entirely into the hands of their esteemed scouts: rather than buying current players, they're buying those who could become them. A fascinating challenge, also in terms of creating lasting technical and economic value. And in some ways, it mirrors the footballing performance of the Public Investment Fund, the Saudi Arabian sovereign wealth fund that owns the Magpies and which has recently scaled back its overwhelming financial commitment to the world of sport. This isn't a matter of demobilization, the Saudis have repeatedly warned, but of more prudent management of their assets—especially since sustaining the irrational pace of the CR7 season, frankly, would have been impossible in the long run even with all the oil in the world. The Saudi Pro League itself has adopted this approach, more focused on the long term and the development of young talent. Newcastle appears to be no exception. The question remains: will they be able to do it?

 

 

 

 

I am a simple man but I love this, the Bianconeri, thank you.

[TRon]

12 minutes ago, Curva Sud Milano said:

Newcastle is still the richest club in the world, but it has decided to focus on youth and let go of players who ask to be sold.

 

Will focusing solely on young players, selling the big names, be enough to become "the best in the world by 2030"?

 

It's not a U-turn, but it's certainly a deviation from the path of mega-spending. No more Tonalis, Isaks, or Woltemades: Newcastle's future will be based on different transfer market parameters. Spending less, scouring youth systems around the world for the most promising talents, and selling on the most valuable players without too many regrets. The symbol of the future? The purchase of Ewen Jaouen, a 20-year-old goalkeeper the Magpies will acquire from Rouen for around €20 million. A small side note: so far, he's only played in Ligue 2 and has very little top-level experience to justify such a price. Yet Newcastle is confident they've pulled off a major coup. And the same goes for many other reinforcements—already secured or in the running—young and relatively unknown. It's a strategy with significant risk, especially considering that with their current squad, the Bianconeri finished the Premier League season in a rather disappointing 12th place. However, in these first days of the transfer window, Anthony Gordon has already been sold to Barcelona for over €80 million. Sandro Tonali, the Telegraph explains in this article, is also on the list of potential departures, but anyone wanting to land him will have to shell out at least €100 million—and it won't be easy to budge at these prices. In both cases, Newcastle have no intention of replacing their best players with established additions of the same caliber. And the transfer targets set by management raise several question marks. A few examples? Victor Muñoz, a 2003-born striker currently playing for Osasuna, is highly sought after. Zadok Yohanna, an 18-year-old winger from Aik Solna, was also being closely followed before Brighton arrived and crushed the competition. Meanwhile, in midfield, especially if Tonali or Willock were to leave, Newcastle would opt for Lamine Camara: a 22-year-old from Metz, with some experience at Monaco. None of them would cost more than €40 million, half of what they earned from Gordon's sale. Of course, these are still significant expenses, in absolute terms. But not by today's Premier League standards, nor given what Newcastle itself has demonstrated in recent seasons, displaying virtually limitless resources and ambitions: according to club officials, the goal is to become "the best in the world by 2030," without missing out on Champions League qualification. It's clear that following up on certain announcements by building a team with no experience presents a significant risk: even by identifying the right technical prospects, their potential must be cultivated over time, with all the stages that a player's career requires. Being immediately ready for the European assault could prove an unsustainable task, especially in the short term. And it seems Newcastle's footballing future has fallen entirely into the hands of their esteemed scouts: rather than buying current players, they're buying those who could become them. A fascinating challenge, also in terms of creating lasting technical and economic value. And in some ways, it mirrors the footballing performance of the Public Investment Fund, the Saudi Arabian sovereign wealth fund that owns the Magpies and which has recently scaled back its overwhelming financial commitment to the world of sport. This isn't a matter of demobilization, the Saudis have repeatedly warned, but of more prudent management of their assets—especially since sustaining the irrational pace of the CR7 season, frankly, would have been impossible in the long run even with all the oil in the world. The Saudi Pro League itself has adopted this approach, more focused on the long term and the development of young talent. Newcastle appears to be no exception. The question remains: will they be able to do it?

 

 

 

 

 

Given the financial restrictions imposed by SCR/UEFA, Newcastle don't really have any other options but to go down that route. Anything else is unsustainable, even if the owners are the richest in the world. They are legally prevented from investing in the highest quality players. 

[Curva Sud Milano]

6 minutes ago, cannybagoftudor said:

 

I am a simple man but I love this, the Bianconeri, thank you.

 

Ahahahahah !!!!

[Kanj]

46 minutes ago, KingArthur said:

Was Guehi ”absolutely keen on coming up”? 
 

we tried to sign Ekitike once, and he refused?

 

Yep, been said so on here by a few posters who either met the guy or know players who are mates with him. As with Trafford sounded like homes or plans of moving up were already being discussed. 

 

Re: Ekitke we tried the first time and he went to Paris, we may have tried again before he went to Frankfurt (again, we don't promise play time, so he may have just wanted to go and play full time football in first team) but the time to get him was after that first Frankfurt season and paid him the money to entice him. 

 

11 minutes ago, The College Dropout said:

The season Wilson scored 18 and for us shot us into the CL?

 

In hindsight we should’ve been back in for Etikite after that 18 goal season but that’s perfect hindsight.  
 

I wasn’t for the DCL signing but it was a better route than the money spent on Woltemade and Wissa.  
 

Akliouche is another I fear we’ve waited too long. 
 

We need to get back to nicing decisively and early. 

 

Yep yep. Wilson was finally healthy and was banging them in for us - where as Isak was still coming on and was coming off injuries - Hell Isak was looking a player playing LW or even behind/with Wilson. Aye honestly, I thought it was a no brainer deal to get DCL in when we knew Wilson was going, I thought DCL would have been a decent backup for Isak until that went off the boil, and then after that I was thinking just get him in on a free and preserve cash to when we have a proper structure in place. Obv easier said than done as we had CL football coming. 

 

The guys we should absolutely be over this summer are Fernandez-Pardo, Munoz, even Akliouche, Stankovic. They are 1 season away from being big time names and even this world cup coming. 

[KaKa]

36 minutes ago, Curva Sud Milano said:

 

A short article that examines your situation and raises some doubts about the PIF's new strategy... doubts that, I believe, are understandable.

https://www.rivistaundici.com/2026/06/08/newcastle-futuro-calciomercato/

 

They seem to think Newcastle will be replacing key players with kids, which is not what they're doing.

 

Gordon's first team place will be taken by Barnes, with Munoz coming in as a high upside younger player to challenge for that position.

 

This is likely what they are going to try and aim for at each position in the team. Instead of having the likes of Murphy and Willock as squad players that are not that good and have absolutely zero upside.

 

If they do sell a key first team player like Tino at right back for example, they will bring in a player that is first team ready there.

[Curva Sud Milano]

27 minutes ago, TRon said:

 

 

Given the financial restrictions imposed by SCR/UEFA, Newcastle don't really have any other options but to go down that route. Anything else is unsustainable, even if the owners are the richest in the world. They are legally prevented from investing in the highest quality players. 

 

From my perspective this new approach isn't wrong... Udinese has been doing this since the 1990s with excellent sporting and financial results (they haven't been relegated to Serie B since 1993), Atalanta has been doing it for last 15 years with even more surprising results, Como has been doing it for a very short time and will be playing in the Champions League next year.

The problem, in my opinion, is another... if you're Bournemouth or Palace, this approach is the best thing you can do, but if you're Newcastle and your owners publicly declare they want to make you a top team by 2030, this change in strategy is doomed to failure (not financially, of course).

Another, even bigger problem is that this approach requires specific skills from the management... Udinese has a scouting network that's almost unbeatable in terms of value for money for the players they acquire, while Atalanta takes a different approach to their acquisitions but rarely makes mistakes and invests heavily in their youth academy, which is the best in Italy.

Are we sure your managers know how to do the same thing? The article I posted raises a legitimate doubt about the French goalkeeper...either you've found a new Buffon or you risk not getting your investment back.

[KaKa]

4 minutes ago, Curva Sud Milano said:

 

From my perspective this new approach isn't wrong... Udinese has been doing this since the 1990s with excellent sporting and financial results (they haven't been relegated to Serie B since 1993), Atalanta has been doing it for last 15 years with even more surprising results, Como has been doing it for a very short time and will be playing in the Champions League next year.

The problem, in my opinion, is another... if you're Bournemouth or Palace, this approach is the best thing you can do, but if you're Newcastle and your owners publicly declare they want to make you a top team by 2030, this change in strategy is doomed to failure (not financially, of course).

Another, even bigger problem is that this approach requires specific skills from the management... Udinese has a scouting network that's almost unbeatable in terms of value for money for the players they acquire, while Atalanta takes a different approach to their acquisitions but rarely makes mistakes and invests heavily in their youth academy, which is the best in Italy.

Are we sure your managers know how to do the same thing? The article I posted raises a legitimate doubt about the French goalkeeper...either you've found a new Buffon or you risk not getting your investment back.

 

We are not going to be replicating Bournemouth and Palace man. My goodness 

[KingArthur]

33 minutes ago, Kanj said:

 

Yep, been said so on here by a few posters who either met the guy or know players who are mates with him. As with Trafford sounded like homes or plans of moving up were already being discussed. 

 

Re: Ekitke we tried the first time and he went to Paris, we may have tried again before he went to Frankfurt (again, we don't promise play time, so he may have just wanted to go and play full time football in first team) but the time to get him was after that first Frankfurt season and paid him the money to entice him. 

 

 

The guys we should absolutely be over this summer are Fernandez-Pardo, Munoz, even Akliouche, Stankovic. They are 1 season away from being big time names and even this world cup coming. 

I think Akliouche is already out of our reach, as is F-P. 
 

I have to admit I dont these ”he knows this guy and he was desperate to come” -stuff very seriously. 
 

i think if we had made a move for Ekitike, if he even was willing to leave, bigger boys would have moved in anyway. 

[Curva Sud Milano]

5 minutes ago, KaKa said:

 

We are not going to be replicating Bournemouth and Palace man. My goodness 

 

I hope ...

[KingArthur]

11 minutes ago, Curva Sud Milano said:

 

From my perspective this new approach isn't wrong... Udinese has been doing this since the 1990s with excellent sporting and financial results (they haven't been relegated to Serie B since 1993), Atalanta has been doing it for last 15 years with even more surprising results, Como has been doing it for a very short time and will be playing in the Champions League next year.

The problem, in my opinion, is another... if you're Bournemouth or Palace, this approach is the best thing you can do, but if you're Newcastle and your owners publicly declare they want to make you a top team by 2030, this change in strategy is doomed to failure (not financially, of course).

Another, even bigger problem is that this approach requires specific skills from the management... Udinese has a scouting network that's almost unbeatable in terms of value for money for the players they acquire, while Atalanta takes a different approach to their acquisitions but rarely makes mistakes and invests heavily in their youth academy, which is the best in Italy.

Are we sure your managers know how to do the same thing? The article I posted raises a legitimate doubt about the French goalkeeper...either you've found a new Buffon or you risk not getting your investment back.

I think people understand this ”new strategy” a bit wrong. We are not solely focusing on young players, but more than before. 

[Curva Sud Milano]

7 minutes ago, KingArthur said:

I think people understand this ”new strategy” a bit wrong. We are not solely focusing on young players, but more than before. 

 

It will certainly be like this but I think that the PIF wants to shout "Forget about purchases of 60/70m or more !!! "... but they are saying it in a disguised and polite way so as not to piss off the fans too much.

[KaKa]

8 minutes ago, Curva Sud Milano said:

 

It will certainly be like this but I think that the PIF wants to shout "Forget about purchases of 60/70m or more !!! "... but they are saying it in a disguised and polite way so as not to piss off the fans too much.

 

Newcastle need to sign good players regardless of what they cost.

 

We signed Bruno for £35 million and he is still significantly better than Tonali who we signed for £60 million, and who was not worth that fee in my opinion.

 

In fact the only signing over £50 million that has been an unquestionable hit so far was Isak.

 

All the rest have been all over the place with very mixed and inconsistent results that haven't really justified their fees - Tonali, Wissa, Elanga and Woltemade.

[arnonel]

We will sign 70m players, just only when they are 20m