The only way is to Newcastle United.
The exit of Mike Ashley and the subsequent acquisition of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) in October 2021 facilitated a huge recovery in Tyneside. Meanwhile, Eddie Howe had trained brilliantly since his arrival.
The Magpies are now blessed with all the financial muscle an elite football club would require, but it was Howe’s astute coaching and the club’s shrewd approach to recruitment that helped Newcastle emerge once again as a serious force in the Premier League.
Sure, a lot of money has been spent by the new owners, but every signing since the start of the January 2022 transfer window has been meaningful and worthwhile.
Here’s all the work Newcastle have done under PIF ownership so far.
player | join from | the date of join | Expenses |
|---|---|---|---|
Kieran Trippier | Atletico Madrid | January 7, 2022 | 12 million pounds sterling |
Chris Wood | burnley | January 13, 2022 | 25 million pounds sterling |
Bruno Guimarães | Leon | January 30, 2022 | 40 million pounds sterling |
Matt Targett | Aston Villa | January 31, 2022 | Undisclosed loan fees |
Dan Byrne | Brighton and Hove Albion | January 31, 2022 | 13 million pounds sterling |
Matt Targett | Aston Villa | June 8, 2022 | 15 million pounds sterling |
Nick Pope | burnley | June 24, 2022 | 10 million pounds sterling |
Sven Putman | night | July 1, 2022 | 32 million pounds sterling |
Alexander Isaac | Real Sociedad | August 26, 2022 | 63 million pounds sterling |
Garang Cole | Central Coast Mariners | September 30, 2022 | £300,000 |
Total spending: £210.3m |
Newcastle’s total spending since the arrival of the PIF has been around £210m. The Magpies did an excellent job of securing several priority targets last January, but have had to spend the most by any club in Europe in order to do so.
However, Kieran Trippier, Dan Burn and Bruno Guimarães have all played big roles in Newcastle’s exponential improvement, with the latter’s value skyrocketing over the past year. His £40 million purchase proved to be a bargain.
Then Alexander Isaacs arrived in the summer for £63m, which they spent close to £120m ahead of the 2022/23 season. However, Newcastle were the seventh biggest spenders in the Premier League with Wolverhampton, West Ham and Nottingham Forest spending the most.
Summer arrives, Sven Putman has been great this season, and so has Nick Pope between the sticks. No goalkeeper has kept more clean sheets (14) than the former Burnley goalkeeper in Europe’s top five leagues in 2022/23 so far.
