Newcastle United have not yet been linked with many foreign players this summer but the Magpies have a history of spending big on overseas talent under Eddie Howe
There is a reason why senior figures inside Newcastle United believe the challenge only gets even harder this season. A ball has yet to be kicked, but the competition is as fierce as ever.
Liverpool, Manchester City, Chelsea and Manchester United have all made aggressive moves in the opening weeks of June and Eddie Howe’s prediction that some of the best players will move ‘quite quickly’ has proved prescient.
The reality is a number of clubs with far bigger revenues and wage bills are fishing in the same pond, whether it is Real Madrid with Dean Huijsen; Manchester United with Bryan Mbeumo; Chelsea with Liam Delap; and, now, Liverpool with Marc Guehi.
Newcastle may have ended a 70-year wait for a major trophy last season, and qualified for the Champions League for the second time in three years, but the Magpies are still playing catch up to a degree.
For context, Manchester City (£412.6m) spent nearly twice as much on salaries as Newcastle (£218.7m) did in the respective clubs’ most recent set of published accounts.
Although the days of the so-called big six are over, historically, the clubs with the biggest wage bills have picked up the most points more often than not and Newcastle are going to have to be smart to buck that trend again.
The Magpies have to find a way to strengthen a side who need help to compete on multiple fronts, particularly after three windows without a major addition.
Newcastle will clearly need new arrivals to hit the ground running and the bulk of Howe’s signings to date have tellingly had Premier League experience.
Given the intensity of Howe’s demands, and the amount of detail the Newcastle boss goes into, that top-flight background has made it a little easier for new signings to plug in although even Lewis Hall, Tino Livramento and Anthony Gordon have needed time to adjust.
However, the recruitment team and coaching staff are not just looking at these shores; they have also watched future stars on the continent before they truly explode in value.
It is striking how few names from overseas have emerged into the public domain and, contrary to belief, that is not because Howe is adverse to recruiting from abroad.
After all, some of Newcastle’s biggest outlays have been on Alexander Isak, Sandro Tonali, Bruno Guimaraes and Sven Botman.
“We’re looking for the best players mixed together to form a team,” Howe once said. “Wherever they come from is irrelevant to me.”
These deals have often been done when rivals have been looking elsewhere; Newcastle pounced for Isak after the Sweden star scored just six league goals in his final full season for Real Sociedad while the black-and-whites made a mid-season move for Bruno when other suitors were prepared to wait until the summer.
Could history repeat itself? Could a name emerge out of nowhere like Tonali did a couple of years ago? Don’t rule it out. In truth, it has to.
