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Gianni Infantino came to power because of a man called Chuck Blazer, a big, bouncy, bearded man who sounded as if he should have been Ted Lasso’s chairman at AFC Richmond.

Blazer was Fifa’s most senior North American representative who accepted bribes of $11m to vote for Morocco and South Africa’s bids to stage the 1998 and 2010 World Cup.

His arrest for this and many other things led to Sepp Blatter’s downfall and Infantino’s arrival as the new reforming president.

There are two interesting things about Blazer. One was that Fifa was and is a not-for-profit organisation.

The other is that he had three sumptuous apartments in Trump Tower. One for his offices, the other for himself and a third for his cats.

Now, with the revelation that Fifa plans to sell stakes in a company that would run the World Cup, the “not-for-profit” bit has been shunted aside and the values of the family that own the Trump Tower are nakedly front of stage.

The money that stands to be made from selling stakes in the World Cup to private investors – with the brother of Trump’s son-in-law Joshua Kushner’s Thrive Capital to the fore – would dwarf the cash dear old Chuck was able to pocket before the FBI came knocking.

At the head of this company is likely to be one Infantino who might expect to be paid 200 times more than the $227,000 he would earn as secretary-general of the United Nations, a job President Trump was recently touting him for.

Today, Uefa is presenting itself as the great obstacle to Infantino’s proposal. A boycott of the World Cup would wreck it entirely, but a boycott is unlikely to happen since the next tournament will be staged mostly in Spain, who are world champions.

The Spanish government has estimated the 2030 World Cup would bring between €7-8bn into its economy and create 170,000 jobs directly or indirectly. Unemployment in Spain has been around 2.5m for nearly 20 years. Spain is not going to vote for a boycott.

The best sanction Uefa has is to boycott the Club World Cup, which it instinctively dislikes because it challenges its own overblown Champions League.

If Infantino’s scheme were just a story about millionaires becoming billionaires, it might not carry so much resonance.

However, the only way these millionaires will become richer is by further debasing the greatest sporting show on the planet.

As Infantino pointed out amid complaints about ticket prices for group games being measured in thousands of dollars, the World Cup is virtually the only thing Fifa does.

It is certainly the only thing that makes it money, which the Club World Cup did not.

There are just two routes to ramp up Fifa’s already enormous income. One is by expanding the competition to 64 teams, creating more matches, more advertising, more broadcast rights. The other is by staging it more frequently.

There is a case for expansion. The joy of Cape Verde almost holding their own against the eventual finalists Spain and Argentina this summer would not have been possible without a 48-team tournament.

There were, nevertheless, eight nations who qualified for the 2026 World Cup who would not have done so under the old format. In 29 games they managed a single win– and that was when two of them, DR Congo and Uzbekistan, played each other.

The direness of the entrants for a 64-team tournament can be imagined. Who knows? Even Italy might make it.

The South American federation Conmebol is pushing hardest for expansion, mainly because only one of its 10 members would not qualify. A 64-team tournament would also raise a projected $2.5bn more in broadcast revenue compared to the 32-team affair in Qatar.

The 1970 tournament in Mexico, widely regarded as the greatest ever, had 16 teams. It raised less money yet produced infinitely more memories.

It was Blatter who first proposed a World Cup every couple of years. It would earn the investors in Infantino’s new company astonishing sums, but the price would be enormous.

The allure of the World Cup is its rarity, the thought you might not see the likes of Lionel Messi ever again. Well, hold on a couple of years and here he is once more along with his very marketable chums, Kylian Mbappe, Harry Kane and Lamine Yamal.

The allure of sport is that one mistake, one ill-judged putt, one well-directed punch, one beautifully-timed shot can change everything. It is called jeopardy and what football has done is to remove jeopardy from its contests as much as possible.

The 1970 World Cup had 24 group games. Its distant 2026 cousin ran to 72. Qualification is ever more straightforward, finishing third in your group is not necessarily fatal and if there is a superbly worked goal scored against you, VAR might detect a foul in the build-up play.

As a safeguarding measure, Fifa points out that every member will have a share in the World Cup company, but these shares can be sold.

So, you are Gambia, with perhaps the lowest turnover of any African federation with no chance of qualifying, and you can sell your share to whoever.

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Someone or somebody who might want World Cups staged every two years in nations like Saudi Arabia who will pay dazzling upfront sums or who like the United States can maximise every scrap of economic potential.

In 1962, Chile staged the World Cup two years after being laid waste by an earthquake. The Chilean delegate to Fifa, Carlos Dittborn, promised: “Because we have nothing, we will do everything.”

Countries who have nothing have long been of no interest to Fifa and this proposal makes it official.

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Another busy summer at Chelsea is showing no sign of slowing down as the Blues look to offload a number of unwanted stars to fund their lavish spending.

Questions are often raised over their ability to keep splashing the cash in a world of tighter financial regulations. 

However, the club continue to generate significant income through player sales.

Chelsea raised almost £300m through departures last season and have already banked around £120m this summer.

That figure could soon rise towards £160m, with further outgoings expected.

The i Paper understands Liam Delap has three serious suitors, with more clubs expected to enter the race for the striker, who Chelsea value at between £35m and £40m.

Nottingham Forest are in the market for a forward to provide competition and support for Chris Wood.

Manager Oliver Glasner is understood to be a big fan of the 23-year-old and has instructed the club’s hierarchy to pursue a deal.

Owner Evangelos Marinakis is prepared to back Glasner in the transfer market as Forest look to build on the last campaign.

Everton manager David Moyes is also an admirer of Delap.

The Toffees are in desperate need of firepower and sources say Delap is viewed as an ideal focal point.

Leeds United are also monitoring the situation as they seek competition for Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

A potential swoop is viewed by sources as ambitious at this stage, with funds tight following the arrival of goalkeeper James Trafford from Manchester City in a deal worth around £40m, agreed late last week.

Any move for Delap would almost certainly require significant player sales first.

Delap rejected Manchester United before joining Chelsea last summer after impressing at Ipswich Town.

However, he managed only one Premier League goal in an injury-hit debut campaign in the capital.

With Danny Welbeck expected to arrive from Brighton shortly and Emmanuel Emegha also set to be integrated into the squad, Delap is unlikely to get the chance to challenge Joao Pedro for the central striking role.

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• Transfer news: Leeds chase three new signings – including a Bundesliga free agent

Nicolas Jackson will almost certainly leave, with Aston Villa currently his most likely destination.

Defenders Axel Disasi, Benoit Badiashile and Trevoh Chalobah are all up for sale and attracting interest, while forward Marc Guiu could also depart.

Alejandro Garnacho’s loan switch to Villa Park also contains what sources describe as “very achievable” conditions that would make the deal permanent next summer.

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Arsenal’s interest in Real Madrid and Brazil star Vinicius Jr tells a story.

The club’s progress in recent years, subsequent elevation in status and last season’s success has put the Gunners in a position where they can now compete for the signatures of the game’s biggest stars.

The ambition and hunger for silverware has been there for a while now but as Josh Kroenke stood on the open-top bus with Mikel Arteta and his players, watching on as over a million people took to the streets to celebrate the Premier League title win – you got the sense those scenes would only inspire the club’s co-chair to push for more.

It has been a long, arduous journey to the summit of the Premier League for Arteta’s side but having claimed the title for the first time since 2004 last season, every bump in the road, every setback and every struggle felt totally worth it. 

There was, however, one narrative that, despite their success, the Gunners found very hard to shake.

Boring, boring Arsenal

They faced much criticism and many questions over their style of play with Arteta often labelled a “negative” or “boring” coach.

The Arsenal project had reached a stage where nothing less than winning was acceptable and given his Premier League experience both as a player and manager, he decided that the prioritisation of efficiency over flair gave his side the best chance of making history.

His deep understanding of tactics in the English top flight in particular and ability to identify trends before formulating elaborate plans to overcome the obstacles Arsenal faced gave his side a huge advantage.

When all was said and done, the end justified the means.

The task for Arteta and Arsenal now is no longer to reach the summit but instead to remain there and build on the solid foundations they have laid.

‘We’re one of the big boys again’

Excellence runs through the club nowadays from top to bottom; the mentality behind the scenes is totally different to what it was when he first arrived in 2019.

He not only deserves credit for the transformation he has masterminded on the pitch but his infectious enthusiasm and ability to engage others around him has led to restructures off it, far greater investment and the result is clear for all to see.

Nothing screams “we’re one of the big boys again” more than Arsenal’s pursuit of Vinicius, a player who has starred for the biggest club in the world for years now and is regarded by many as the best left winger in the game.

The Gunners are, of course, seeking to take advantage of his current contract situation at Real Madrid but they are deadly serious about landing the 26-year-old and are, by all accounts, willing to break the bank in order to do so.

In response to the links, many have questioned how a superstar like Vinicius would fit into a side that has been built on structure, hard work and unity first and foremost, but the way I see it, he is exactly the type of player Arsenal are missing.

An output monster

The culture at Colney is strong and it is highly unlikely any individual, no matter how big a star, would be able to negatively affect that.

Often, you become a product of your environment and a player of his quality surrounded by accountability, selflessness and the structure that would further platform his talents is only going to thrive.

He has scored 128 goals and provided 100 assists in 375 games for Los Blancos and so if the Gunners were to strike a deal, they would be bringing in an output monster as well as a global superstar.

The recruitment of Christos Tzolis along with the interest in the Brazilian gives you an idea of what the priority was for Arteta going into this summer.

It feels like acknowledgement that his forwards were not as effective as they needed to be at times last season, and while set-piece goals, for example, proved key, that approach doesn’t feel sustainable.

Rivals on high alert

A significant increase in open-play attacking output is a must.

No transfer in football is a sure thing; every deal carries an element of risk, some of course more than others, but there is unanimous agreement that Vinicius’ arrival would be transformational.

Reports of Arsenal’s interest alone has sent shockwaves through the Premier League with the rest of the division suddenly coming to the realisation that the Gunners don’t plan on stopping here – the goal is to build a dynasty in the coming years and who would bet against them doing so?

His salary demands mean Arsenal would have to break their current wage structure to land their man and so understandably, there is lots of focus around the finances of any potential deal.

I prefer to leave the numbers to the accountants and concentrate on what the club’s willingness to explore a transfer such as this one says about their ambition and desire to succeed again and again.

Read more

• Latest: Liverpool’s five attacking transfer targets – with one clear favourite
• Explained: Newcastle’s asking price for Bruno Guimaraes – and the truth about Arsenal ‘talks’

Last campaign had so much riding on it; failure to win the title would have led to questions regarding the Arteta project.

Would another near miss have signified the end?

Instead, having tasted glory and with renewed enthusiasm driven by the ecstasy and jubilation felt by all involved – this feels like just the start.

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Although Yan Diomande’s move to Real Madrid is only expected to be sealed this week, Liverpool have known for some time that they would miss out on the in-demand winger this summer.

Prior to the Spanish giants making a firm move for his signature, the Ivorian had already intimated to his Premier League suitors that they were behind Paris Saint-Germain in his preference.

In response, the Reds withdrew from the chase to consider their next move as they looked to replace the hole in their attack created by Mohamed Salah’s departure.

So, who are the Diomande alternatives Andoni Iraola will look to amid a shortage of options in attack?

Bradley Barcola

The clear favourite to arrive at Anfield this summer is Paris Saint-Germain winger Bradley Barcola.

Not only have the Reds long admired the 23-year-old, but he is also understood to be just as sold on the idea of a move to Merseyside.

That is because of frustrations with his role at PSG, who will also have reduced leverage in any negotiations because he has two years remaining on his deal.

With the European champions looking to add to attacking options that already include Ousmane Dembele, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Desire Doue, Barcola’s path toward an exit is opening up.

And, once he is given the green light to depart the French capital, Liverpool will be right at the front of the queue.

Maghnes Akliouche

Akliouche gives Monaco the lead in Paris, and the tie is now level on aggregate

@tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/TUQHzvzlls

— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) February 25, 2026

Liverpool’s desperate need for forwards this summer means they have made tentative enquiries with the representatives of several wide players expected to be on the market.

And France and Monaco forward Maghnes Akliouche is understood to be among them.

However, the 24-year-old currently prefers to stay in France and active talks with PSG are in progress over a move.

It would take the collapse of those negotiations and for Liverpool to miss out on other targets further up their list for anything to come of their cautious interest.

Matias Fernandez-Pardo

Liverpool have also been keeping a close eye on Lille’s Matias Fernandez-Pardo as a potential option.

The 21-year-old earned a place in Belgium’s World Cup squad with eight goals in 29 Ligue 1 appearances last season, and comes with the added bonus of being capable of playing centre-forward.

That could be particularly useful for a squad that is set to be without the injured Hugo Ekitike for a few months yet.

Still, Fernandez-Pardo doesn’t quite possess the track record of production at an elite level offered by, for example, Barcola, and that is likely to count against him.

Said El Mala

After a breakout season that saw him score 13 goals in 34 appearances for relegation-threatened Koln, Said El Mala is on the radar of a number of top clubs.

But it is understood that Borussia Dortmund are currently leading the chase, and you suspect Liverpool would prefer any young player they are interested in to prove they can do it at a stepping-stone club before coming to Anfield.

It is possible the 19-year-old will come back onto the Reds’ radar in a few years’ time after succeeding in Dortmund.

Yankuba Minteh

One potential target that comes with no fears over his ability to adapt to the Premier League is Yankuba Minteh.

Liverpool were among the clubs that considered swooping for the Gambian when he was put up for sale by Newcastle in 2024 as the Tyneside outfit looked to solve their PSR issues.

He has since thrived at Brighton, and the fact he is a left-footed right winger means he represents a plug-and-play solution to the Salah question.

In terms of drawbacks, the Seagulls drive a notoriously hard bargain and Minteh has three years left on his contract, so it won’t be easy to prise him away for a reasonable fee.

And it is also worth noting that Minteh scored just three goals in 34 league outings last season, though the Reds might well believe he can do better with a higher class of teammate at Anfield.

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The half-time entertainment at Villa Park is simple. A few fans kick a ball towards the halfway line and hope it stays within a circle offering out all manner of prizes.

Chelsea want to pinch that game, “Prize Where It Lies”. They are also in talks with one of Aston Villa’s pitchside presenters after triggering her release clause, and who knows, by next week maybe the catering staff will have swapped Bodymoor Heath for Cobham as well.

This is all in jest, a new social media gag for Villa fans to mask the pain given Chelsea are not finished with them yet after signing Morgan Rogers for a British record £117m.

49 – In the last three Premier League seasons, only Arsenal (64) have scored more set piece goals (excluding penalties) than Aston Villa (49).

MacPhee. pic.twitter.com/BDRNJk787Z

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) July 27, 2026

Now the Blues are coming for Austin MacPhee, the set-piece coach who was instrumental in Villa trailing only Arsenal for such goals in the past three Premier League campaigns.

MacPhee, also seen on the sidelines for Portugal at the World Cup, is in talks with Chelsea, while his parting gift to Villa was a vital role in the Europa League final – his corner routine leading to their opener against Freiburg.

Orchestrated by MacPhee, crossed in by Rogers and volleyed home by Youri Tielemans. Suddenly the recent past reads like ancient history for Villa, with Tielemans having also left for Manchester United.

Tielemans and Rogers are the calibre of player Villa would have loved to build around heading into a second Champions League campaign in three years.

Instead, they face a bigger rebuild than initially foreseen, pushed a couple of steps back while Chelsea get another summer to try and get it right again with a new manager by chucking another £214m – and counting – at the problem ahead of a second season in four without European football.

It is why Villa fans have turned to self-deprecation, because by now they know that no level of banging against a closed door will ever make it open. Financial restraints meant a record fee for Rogers was too good to turn down – there was simply no way of keeping the England international and spending anything close to £100m.

They couldn’t have both and in this regard Villa are not alone. This summer Elliot Anderson has left Nottingham Forest for Manchester City, while Tottenham Hotspur have bought Sandro Tonali from Newcastle United, Mateus Fernandes from West Ham and Jan Paul van Hecke from Brighton.

Newcastle also face a fight to keep captain Bruno Guimaraes amid interest from Arsenal, meaning their Premier League 2030 vision is getting blurrier by the year.

A system that rewards the clubs who entered the elite before the drawbridge was pulled up – and now generate enough revenue to keep spending big – means there is now a ceiling for aspiration, and that is emulating Villa, who themselves know after finishing fourth then sixth then fourth that the more probable direction is down.

To avoid that, Villa must keep faith in a recruitment strategy that has recently bore fruit. Tielemans was a free agent, Rogers bought for an initial £8m. Middlesbrough take a 20 per cent cut of that Rogers fee, but for Villa it is a healthy profit.

Develop, improve, sell, repeat. It is a dangerous game because competition is fierce and moulding players into British records is rare. There have to be risks, and already Villa’s summer highlights that.

The arrival of midfielder Joao Gomes from Wolverhampton Wanderers for £38m appears to be shrewd business. The 25-year-old is four years younger than Tielemans and the reality is that Villa have a Premier League-ready player whose value could at least double in a few years’ time.

Beating Newcastle to Johan Manzambi also offers Villa hope of replacing Rogers, and at 20 they will pray the club-record £59.5m deal one-day reads a bargain. It is no £8m, certainly, but appears to be a coup.

Then there is arguably the greatest gamble of the Unai Emery era in Alejandro Garnacho.

The Argentine has joined from Chelsea on loan with a vague obligation to buy clause, the terms unknown and which may only become clearer if Emery suddenly stops playing the winger – as was the case with Harvey Elliott.

Emery at least wanted Garnacho, although this move has earned Villa little sympathy from those questioning whether a player who recorded five league goals and assists last season is the wisest way of a frustrated club spending, potentially, some of their Rogers money.

Read more

• Michael Hincks: Tottenham’s spending is an insult to Aston Villa and Newcastle

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At 22, Garnacho arrives with his prime years ahead of him, like Manzambi and Gomes, meaning Villa are once again tasked with restabilising a player whose star has faded.

It worked for Marcus Rashford, it might do again, and that puts Villa in the spotlight as the standard-bearer for non-Big Six sides – the club outperforming Chelsea and yet powerless to match them financially.

The jokes will continue to land so long as Villa overachieve and cleverly reinvest, but that is no easy task – just ask Leicester City – and they could feel far less funny in 12 months’ time.

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Go up, spend £155m, defy predictions, and then defy them some more by finishing seventh to become just the fifth promoted side in the Premier League era to play European football the following season.

That was the Sunderland way, a route many clubs would love to follow, more so because promotion success stories have become scarce, with the Black Cats and Leeds United the first promoted teams to avoid relegation since the 2022-23 season.

But Sunderland’s blueprint will not be replicated by Coventry City, who are back in the Premier League after 25 years away.

The Midlands club are determined to do it “the Cov way”, and while parts of that identity are in place, they are still a work in progress going into their trial by fire.

Three transfers, more to follow

Arsenal and Manchester City away, with a home game against Hull City in between, chucks Coventry in at the deep end.

Facing World Cup and Ballon d’Or winners is simultaneously daunting and the exact reason why you want to be in this league, and while Coventry may view these matches as free shots, they will also be aware of how important first impressions are.

Assembling a squad capable of challenging and surviving is therefore the obvious mission.

Coventry have signed Switzerland defender Aurele Amenda for around £17m from Eintracht Frankfurt, winger Loum Tchaouna from Burnley, while midfielder Frank Onyeka has made his move from Brentford permanent.

Coventry’s pursuit of Carl Rushworth is no secret either. The goalkeeper spent the 2025-26 season on loan there, but Brighton are playing hardball having rejected a £20m bid.

And with Coventry boss Frank Lampard active in transfer talks – along with sporting director Dean Austin and head of recruitment Jamie Johnson – the former Chelsea player and manager is reportedly eyeing a couple of reunions.

AC Milan defender Fikayo Tomori worked under Lampard at Derby County and Chelsea, while reports in Italy also claim ex-Blues midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek is another target. Both would bring a wealth of experience were Coventry able to get these deals over the line.

Brentford an inspiration, not Sunderland

Coventry are nowhere near finished this transfer window, one club source told The i Paper, with the World Cup having slowed down activity across the leagues.

The club are happy to have got three deals finalised given the distractions, but going forward they will not go as far as Sunderland’s £155m outlay last summer.

Coventry have spent around £21m so far and have already stressed there are alternative ways of approaching a Premier League return.

Coventry chairman Doug King described Sunderland’s summer as “radical” in March and spoke against “total wholesale changes”.

King’s desire to do it “the Cov way” is a recognition that every club’s needs are different, but there is also an admiration for Brentford, who have become a model of sustainability and how to punch above one’s weight as they prepare for a sixth successive Premier League campaign.

Buying low and selling high requires strong recruitment, arguably some gambles, and 22-year-olds Amenda and Tchaouna fit this “Moneyball” approach Coventry hope leads to success on the pitch and eventually, huge profits.

There is even a belief at Coventry that their foundations are stronger than Brentford’s.

“Coventry is in a fantastic position in the country,” King told The Coventry Telegraph in April.

“There’s a lot of history, a much larger fanbase, much more pedigree in its historical achievements. So I think it has different sort of, I would say, ceiling than a Brentford.

“What they’re achieving… that tells us what can be done in football.”

Putting Cov on the map

Away from the pitch, Coventry have long been working out how to be a sustainable Premier League club.

King appointed Nicola Ibbetson for the freshly-created chief business officer role last year, with Ibbetson leaving Paris Saint-Germain having also previously worked at Aston Villa, Chelsea and Manchester United.

Read more

• Daniel Storey: Coventry City’s promotion is a monumental victory for resilience

• Transfers: Why Manchester United don’t want to sell Marcus Rashford to Tottenham

Ibbetson, who was PSG’s global partnerships director, played a key role in Coventry opening a new two-storey club shop this month, which they believe is “the best store in the Premier League” and includes an F1 racing simulator.

It is all about generating more income and the timing is pertinent because returning to the Premier League means Coventry are back on the map.

A city proud of its club and vice versa, they want that feeling to last.

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GATESHEAD — Friday could well be the most important day of Newcastle United’s season.

July 31: ring it in your black and white calendars.

That is when captain Bruno Guimaraes is slated to return to pre-season training before flying out to La Manga for a week-long camp that they can’t afford to become a circus to rival last year’s tour of the Far East.

Back then, Alexander Isak was engineering the longest and bitterest of goodbyes as Newcastle struggled to contain the narrative from the other side of the globe.

In truth, neither player nor club has ever really recovered.

It is why all eyes are on the returning Guimaraes, who has let it be known he would like to move to Arsenal.

Unlike with Anthony Gordon and Sandro Tonali, however, there will be no quick deal.

Barcelona and Tottenham Hotspur met  – and in the case of Tonali surpassed – Newcastle’s valuation of those two players but Arsenal’s offer is, in the words of one source, “at least” £10m shy of theirs.

What they don’t know, though, is how Guimaraes is going to play it.

Privately he was unhappy with Isak’s conduct last summer but football moves quickly and he wants to compete for Champions League and Premier League titles.

Newcastle seem to be heading into a transition phase and for a player who turns 29 this year, Arsenal’s appeal is understandable.

Could he go on strike? Or at least muddy the waters by returning with focus or fitness issues that prevent him from going to Spain with the rest of the squad?

If either of those things happen, alarm bells will go off at St James’ Park.

Arsenal would smell blood in the water and feel three weeks of innuendo surrounding Guimaraes’ future – without a formal bid at the time of writing – had been justified.

For Newcastle, there would be a decision to make.

Draw a line in the sand and refuse to be pushed around unless Arsenal meet their valuation, or cut their losses and talk turkey with the Gunners.

As appealing as the first option might sound, and goodness only knows supporters are looking for the Magpies to bear their teeth after a sobering 12 months, it also comes with the risk of the saga consuming the club like Isak-gate did.

The perfect scenario for Newcastle, and one insiders still believe, perhaps optimistically, will come to pass, is that Guimaraes returns, respects the club, lets the transfer play out and gets his head down.

“There is nothing to say that Bruno won’t be back training with us,” Eddie Howe said on Saturday after watching his team start pre-season with a 1-1 draw at Gateshead.

He described Guimaraes as “fantastic”, a “great player” and a “great person”.

Howe added they have spoken several times during the summer, including after a World Cup in which Guimaraes’ penalty miss contributed to Brazil’s shock exit to Norway.

He, though, was hedging his bets, saying he “doesn’t know what will happen with Bruno” but also emphasising the club want to keep him.

It all felt a bit messy, in truth.

You could say the same about the state Newcastle are in right now.

There were more than 7,000 fans at Gateshead on Saturday but plenty of empty seats, too.

For all that the Magpies are hoovering up promising talent in the transfer market, it is difficult not to feel anxious about the club’s direction given they have missed out on two players who would have gone straight into their starting XI and signed four who need time to develop and might not start when the serious stuff gets underway against Liverpool next month.

You can see what they are trying to do in the face of suffocating financial rules and Sean Steur, the 18-year-old midfielder signed from Ajax earlier this month, looked tidy against National League opponents.

He models his game on Kevin De Bruyne and it was a balm to hear him speak in glowing terms afterwards about Newcastle, its pull and the club’s vision.

Read more

• Transfers: Why Newcastle signed Aladji Bamba – plus three other deals in the works
• Explained: Newcastle’s asking price for Bruno Guimaraes – and the truth about Arsenal ‘talks’

A reminder, perhaps, that this is a big club that 16 months ago felt on a very different journey from the one it is now on.

“Another challenging summer” was how Howe described it and he is not wrong.

They could really do with Guimaraes playing ball to wrestle some of that momentum back.

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