Newcastle United‘s CEO Darren Eales likes to call them “champagne problems”.
It is the best way to describe Newcastle’s challenge of navigating a transfer window that sees them balancing what a senior source insists are “very real” financial fair play concerns with the need to supplement a squad that over-achieved last season to qualify for the Champions League.
Even for a club that has trodden so nimbly in the transfer market since their transformative takeover, it will be a difficult trick to pull off.
Funds are far from unlimited despite outside perceptions, they’re not yet able to meet the wage demands of the very top players and the club’s transfer committee – a “brains trust” featuring Eddie Howe, his brother Andy, who is head of first team scouting, Dan Ashworth and head of recruitment Steve Nickson and others, have exacting standards.
But ask anyone at Newcastle whether they’d rather be wrestling with these issues or trying to kick on from a mid-table finish and the answer would be a resounding one. Especially when they’ve already pulled off a slick transfer operation that shows they mean business.
On Monday they finally confirmed the capture of Sandro Tonali from AC Milan, a blue riband addition of a player who one senior source tells i “was always top of our list”.
“He is an exceptional talent and has the mentality, physicality and technical attributes to be a great fit for us,” Eddie Howe said.
When the club talked about finishing in the top four accelerating their transfer market progress, it was with an eye on signing the likes of Tonali.
The natural inclination is to ask what comes next. But Newcastle insiders feel it’s worth taking a step back to understand what a significant deal the Tonali one is.
A £52m midfielder signing – the second most expensive transfer the club have ever brokered – was concluded with speed and precision and would not have been possible as little as six months ago. The top-four finish has been transformative.
They have signed a player who was in a Champions League semi-final just a few weeks ago, a fine technician with versatility and intelligence.
There’s an acknowledgment it may take him time to get up to speed, and he won’t join the rest of the team in pre-season for a couple of weeks yet, but when he gets there they believe he will be an “elite” addition.
Crucially, he will complement what they already have, with his addition allowing Bruno Guimaraes more freedom to attack.
“It shows how far we’ve come that he was not only willing to listen to us but also willing to push for the deal,” a source tells i.
Newcastle still have more work to do but insiders are relaxed. They point to the stage of the summer that the Alexander Isak deal was done as proof that the market will ebb and flow and opportunities will arise.
There’s no concern whatsoever at missing out on James Maddison, who signed for Tottenham for £40m last week, or Hungary international Dominik Szoboszlai, who joined Liverpool for £60m.
Both were Newcastle targets but it has emerged neither were viewed as essential in the same way that Tonali was. The club believe funds will be better assigned elsewhere, with another midfielder, a winger and left-back on the agenda.
It’s understood there are some funds available for further additions but Newcastle will look at the loan market and deals that can be structured with staggered payments.
The measured words coming from inside the camp don’t convince everyone. One rival recruitment director said he’d heard similar before – only for Newcastle to spend more than £40m on Anthony Gordon, for whom hopes are high next season.
The smart money remains on them making further impressive dips into the market, with real admiration for the likes of Leicester’s Harvey Barnes and Leeds midfielder Tyler Adams.
The club have also held talks with Southampton over right-back Tino Livramento but are yet to reach an agreement on a fee.
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