Long term readers will know that I’m not the biggest fan of transfer windows. However, the business that Newcastle United have conducted this summer has really made me sit up and get excited. Has Eddie Howe already assembled Newcastle United’s most complete squad ever?
Playing Manchester City so early on in the season will certainly have given the Newcastle United manager a real barometer of both the progress made in the last two years and how much further there is to scale the mountain to the exceptional height of The Sky Blues.
Make no mistake, Pep Guardiola took Newcastle seriously on Saturday evening. Very seriously. And in the end, whilst the result was perhaps to be expected – a 1-0 defeat - The Magpies performance felt a little off. It didn’t quite reach the high standards we’ve become accustomed to under Eddie Howe and there is some slight disappointment in that respect. However, there are definitely positives to take from the encounter such as the way we defended for the majority of the match.
Fresh off the back of winning the treble, and adding the Super Cup a few days prior to kick off, City, in their first match in front of their own fans, were always going to want to prove a point and get the victory.
And in the first half in particular Newcastle couldn’t lay a glove on their hosts, who dominated proceedings. Whilst United defended well and remained compact, one big mistake was all it took for City to seize the advantage and never let it go. There was improvement in the second half, but again in the final third United just couldn’t truly get at City on this occasion.
So, what does this mean for Newcastle United? Are there still areas of the squad to develop going forwards? And how good has this summer’s transfer window been?
Whatever the opposite of ‘Can we play you every week?’ definitely applies to fixtures against the Premier League and European champions! Although they set the bar for where Newcastle wants to be, it’s a relief to know that, thankfully, there aren’t many sides in the world who can reach their consistent level.
It’s worth remembering that Newcastle are on their own journey. A journey which the club has made excellent progress on so far. In under two years the club has gone from relegation certainties to a Champions League team. But despite the quick improvements they’re not the finished article.
At the end of last season there were a few areas of the team that needed improvement but the main focus has really been on adding depth. The foundations of a great team were there last season with the likes of Trippier, Botman, Bruno and Isak, but Howe has often mentioned how he needs players who are adaptable to play more than one position and that he wants to have two players for each position in his preferred formation.
To be an elite club, you need elite players who can come in and deputise to a similar level as those who drop out, whether that be because of injury, suspension or rotation.
Although the club had a successful season in 2022/23, finishing 4th in the Premier League, qualifying for the Champions League and reaching a League Cup Final, there were indicators that the squad lacked appropriate depth.
Undoubtedly, the primary evidence of this lack of depth came in January during Newcastle’s FA Cup 3rd round tie away to Sheffield Wednesday. Howe named a much changed lineup to face the League One side with the likes of Lewis, Manquillo and Ritchie all starting. The team subsequently slumped to a 2-1 defeat and were knocked out of the competition by a side two divisions below them.
As well as that disappointment, the other key sign that there have been issues with squad depth was simply by casting an eye at the bench. Once you were past the core of 15 or 16 players who Howe relied on to play most of the time there wasn’t too much quality left. Hard workers, yes. But quality, no.
So with the window closing very soon, let’s analyse the business that Newcastle have managed to do this summer and see how that will impact the squad this season.
Players In
Sandro Tonali - £55m
Newcastle surprised the footballing world when, almost from nowhere, they announced the signing of Milan’s highly rated midfielder Sandro Tonali. Tonali should compliment Bruno Guimaraes well and allow for both himself and Bruno to flourish in a fluid central midfield three. Both players being comfortable in possession and able to break up play as well as advance play, should in theory, be too much for many teams to handle this season. Early evidence suggests that rather than have a set position where one sits deeper and one pushes up, Howe will instead insist on a more fluid style where either Tonali or Guimaraes are capable of attacking whilst the other sits in. It should be exciting and interesting to watch.
The Italian’s arrival also adds depth to a pretty stacked looking midfield. Longstaff, Anderson and Willock’s fight for minutes has certainly got more challenging, however with 4 competitions on the go, there should still be opportunities for all.
Harvey Barnes – £39m
An exceptional attacking talent, Barnes scored 13 goals for relegated Leicester and contributed 3 assists too. In his debut for Newcastle against Aston Villa he looked very exciting coming from the bench to score one and assist one. Barnes, replaces Saint-Maximin who left to join the Saudi league. In terms of production, Barnes certainly looks like a more dependable upgrade on the popular Frenchman.
After two matches so far, Barnes has been on the bench behind Anthony Gordon, another relatively new addition who signed for the club in January. The left side of the pitch will look very different with those two this season.
However there is a real possibility that at some point we see both players on at the same time. Howe could decide to switch Gordon to the right and play Barnes on the left if he feels Gordon offers more productivity than Paraguayan Miggy Almiron.
Tino Livramento – £32m
Kieran Trippier’s long term replacement, Livramento is a highly rated young right back who is capable of attacking down the right wing too. Livramento looks to be a very similar like for like replacement for Trippier and can be expected to fill in whenever Trippier needs a rest. This should help maintain consistency in the right back position.
Still expect to see Trippier start the majority of the most important matches as Livramento is eased in to cover for the on field captain is certain fixtures when the matches come thick and fast.
Livramento also offers another potential option to add competition to both Almiron and Murphy on the right side of the attacking trio.
Lewis Hall – Loan with an obligation to buy for £28m
Only 18 years old, but a player most Chelsea fans didn’t want to lose which speaks volumes. Hall is a left back who has all the attributes to be a star player. He comes in and solves an issue at one of the most frequently discussed positions at the club.
Dan Burn is the current starter at left back. Burn’s role as left back is nuanced though. It is unorthodox. He does not, generally, push too far up the field. Instead, when Newcastle attack with Trippier down the right, Burn will sit in to create a back 3 in case the ball is overturned – something that worked very well last season. There has been some criticism of the Blyth born defender, some warranted and some definitely not, that when caught out it can leave the team exposed when the opposition attacks.
The introduction of Hall, who plays more like Trippier down the right by getting forward, may necessitate a change in style for the club. Expect Hall, to be phased in slowly this season with him switching to the main starter in the second half of this season or even next season as Howe figures out how the team adapt to this transition of style.
Players Out
Allan Saint-Maximin - £25m
A real fan favourite who ultimately was not a natural fit for an Eddie Howe team. On his day, he was unplayable. But lack of consistency coupled with being injury prone is probably why Newcastle decided to cash in on him. The transfer also helped Newcatsle with their tight FFP restrictions.
With Gordon and Barnes now in the squad, that left no room for St Maximin, who should be thanked and remembered as a hero at St James’ for the role he played in keeping us up in the dark days of the Steve Bruce era.
Sadly for him, football moves on.
Conclusion
Overall then, the big area of improvement at Newcastle has been solidifying the midfield with better options and more depth. Tonali and Barnes (along with Gordon in his first full season) yes, but also youngsters such as Anderson look to have stepped up even more while 17 year old Lewis Miley was also given a squad number for the first team too.
Howe and his recruitment team have also sorted the tricky issue at left back in the medium term. The same could be said for the right back position too, where an ageing Trippier will need to be replaced in the next couple of years.
The one area of concern for most United fans is cover at centre back. Botman and Schar are the first choice pairing but behind them the backups are Lascelles and Burn. Burn is a solid replacement for Botman if needed. Club captain Lascelles is Schar’s backup and whilst he is a good honest pro, there is probably a need to improve the option at right centre back at some point in the not too distant future.
Unless there is a late dip into the market for a centre back, it does look like Newcastle’s business is done for this summer. And the additions to the squad are exciting, not just because of who they are, but also because of how they fill obvious gaps and needs that existed in the team before.
Crucially they also bring the average age of the squad down too and allows Howe a group of under 21 players available outside of the registered 25 man squad.
All that’s really left to do during this window is move on some of the surplus ex-first teamers such as Hendrick, Fraser and Manquillo, though this is clearly easier said than done as there isn’t a huge market for these players.
With all being said Howe is recruiting smartly. The club are identifying weaknesess and gaps in the squad, scouting players with the right characteristics and then being ruthless when making deals.
I’m not sure I’ve ever seen the club act so professionally and thoroughly as they currently are doing. And the really exciting thing for all Newcastle United supporters is that this recruitment method and philosophy will only improve in time.
The squad certainly looks as deep and as balanced as most Newcastle United supporters have ever seen it. It’s time to sit back, support the team and see what they’re capable of achieving this season.
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