Ahead of the summer window Newcastle fans were promised their club’s business would be “transformative” – arguably the biggest window in recent history.
Eddie Howe directed a message through the press to the club’s hierarchy, urging them they needed to “act fast”. Though due to Newcastle’s ambitious early targets, they were rejected multiple times from the players they had done so much work on, and did not make their first senior signing until 11th July when Anthony Elana joined from Nottingham Forest for £55m.
So how did it unfold, why did early targets sign elsewhere, who did we sign and what could happen next?
Early blows and late setbacks
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They thought they had a big chance of signing at least one of Joao Pedro, Liam Delap, Benjamin Sesko, Hugo Ekitike and Dean Huijsen, who were all impressed by the club’s proposal and plan to integrate them into the squad and how they would develop under Howe.
However, in all five cases, their targets seemingly chose a combination of either club history/reputation, higher wages, agent fees, and location as a means to snub them. Despite being a leading target pre-window, Newcastle never formalised their interest with Brentford over Bryan Mbeummo, as his heart was set on Manchester United and they were informed about this early on.
You can’t blame them for trying for Huijsen who was available at a great price due to his release clause of £50m. However, there are not many players in the world that would turn their nose up at a move to Real Madrid.
Pedro and Delap both chose Chelsea over Newcastle. Pedro was due to location, Pedro’s priority was to stay near London where he felt more comfortable. He also believed playing for the Blues would give him a better chance of becoming a starter for Brazil in the 2026 World Cup. Delap, again, was very impressed by Newcastle’s proposal and you can’t blame the club for attempting to capitalise on a market opportunity in a priority positon, with his release clause at a bargain £30m.
However, Delap believed he had a better chance of winning trophies with the London side, and knew Enzo Maresca well from their time together at Man City.
Hugo Ekitike would have been the prime replacement for Isak, there’s no hiding it. He was probably the only available player in the market that stylistically replicated a lot of the Swede’s qualities and was ready to take the step up to the Premier League, after a successful season with Frankfurt in the Bundesliga.
Newcastle’s recruitment team were in full agreement about this, they had scouted the striker extensively since his days at Reims when Steve Nickson identified him as a primary attacking target. Though, just like last time, Newcastle missed out after believing they were very close to agreeing a deal, this time to rivals Liverpool.
Newcastle pushed to sign Benjamin Sesko with cautious optimism, but the belief internally was that he always favoured a move to Old Trafford. This is something the club need to improve on; not spending precious time pursuing targets that don’t want to join. They did receive encouragement from the player’s camp to lodge a bid, but this was ultimately a tactical move to hasten Man United’s pursuit. The Slovenian eventually joined The Red Devils for around £75m, despite Newcastle making a bid of £80m.
That was their primary outfield targets… then we have James Trafford, the less said the better. The GK had been telling his close circle for the past year or so that he was almost a certain a move to Newcastle would materialise this summer with personal terms having been agreed in that timeframe. However, courtesy of Paul Mitchell’s negotiation methods (according to reports), frustrated Burnley to the point they weren’t willing to do business with the North East side. As Manchester City’s buy back clause period was drawing to a close Burnley reluctantly accepted an NUFC bid of around £27m, this was matched by City in the final hours of their buy-back agreement – the GK picked Manchester.
The incomings
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**Anthony Elanga** – £55m from Nottingham Forest.
Ranking 6.5/10
Personally, I wasn’t a huge fan of this one. Firstly, even in today’s market I think this is around a £10m – £15m overpay.
Elanga did have a great season with Forest, however this was catalysed by Forest’s counter attacking style, something that Newcastle do replicate, yes, though can’t rely on against teams with a low block.
The 23-year-old’s mains strength is his pace, he’s extremely good at running into open spaces, on the counter, though there are some doubts about his effectiveness to break down teams that sit in.
He’s absolutely an improvement on Jacob Murphy, and going into the window Newcastle needed to address the right winger position. They raised the floor, with this one, but not the ceiling. Personally, I would have preferred Monaco’s Maghnes Akliouche at the price, although to club had reservations after character checks.
**Nick Woltemade** – £69m from VfB Stuttgart.
Ranking 9/10
As I’m writing this we have yet to see him play for us, though the 6ft 6’ striker has all the attributes to be a huge success and a fan favourite. Described as the ‘two-metre Messi’ because of his freakishly good dribbling, he really is the epitome of a unique striking profile, but this one has all the potential to be a ceiling raiser.
His link up play is also not to be overlooked, he could very much be deployed behind Yoane Wissa this season, especially as Howe is seemingly more open to adapting his formation. His first goal in the Gallowgate end will be special.
**Jacob Ramsey** – £43m from Aston Villa
Ranking 8.5/10
This is another one I’m a fan of. I’ll get the only negative out the way first which is the price, I think it’s a slight overpay maybe by around £5m-plus. That aside, I’m really excited for the 24-year-old to kick on this season.
The Englishman can play as an 8 and on the left wing. He’s naturally very talented, a superb athlete and a powerful runner who can drive with the ball and pick it up in the pockets. Ramsey also improves our midfield depth, which was key after the departure of Sean Longstaff to Leeds.
**Malick Thiaw** – £34m from AC Milan.
Ranking 7.5/10
A right-sided centre back was arguably Newcastle’s second-highest priority position they needed to address in this window. Fabian Schar is turning 34 this year and prior to Thiaw’s arrival they only had Jamaal Lascelles and Emil Krafth as back-ups on that side.
They set out to bring in a younger, more athletic ball-playing CB and I really do believe they have a great fit with Thiaw, who NUFC Blog revealed was [back on our radar in late July](https://www.nufcblog.co.uk/2025/07/30/exclusive-newcastle-back-in-for-milans-malick-thiaw-after-two-year-pursuit/).
Despite starting the season as a substitute, Thiaw will be given time to settle with the hope he and Sven Botman can become our future centre-back pairing.
Perhaps the only negative of this one is the price, which on paper isn’t bad at all, it’s just extremely frustrating that before Milan parted with manager Sergio Conceicao it was reported they agreed a fee with Italian side Como for around £20m; almost £15m less than what Newcastle had to pay. A big part of his valuation increase was due to Massimiliano Allegri’s preference to keep the defender when he was appointed, with Thiaw impressing over pre-season.
**Aaron Ramsdale** = £4m loan fee with option to buy (undisclosed) from Southampton
Ranking 6.5/10
After the failed pursuit of James Trafford, Newcastle still needed to address their GK department. Nick Pope used to be one of the best shot-stoppers in the league. However, since that shoulder injury he picked up in December 2023, he has only shown flashes of his true ability.
Additionally, his distribution is incredibly poor, and there’s no secret around it, over the past two season teams have deliberately pressed Pope whenever he receives the ball due to his lack of composure and it impacts our ability to build-up from the back – something Eddie Howe wants his squad to improve on.
So, Ramsdale. I think it’s a decent signing, especially as he helps lower the average age of the squad. I’m yet to be convinced he is as good as he was once perceived to be, but most importantly his distribution is a significant improvement on Pope.
A loan move with an option to buy is smart and it will be interesting to see if Newcastle do make his move permanent at the end of the season. The 27-year-old has been told to fight for the no.1 spot and will be given plenty opportunities throughout the season to show his ability.
**Yoane Wissa** – £55m from Brentford.
Ranking 7/10
With the departure of Alexander Isak, it was paramount that Newcastle signed a striker who would guarantee them goals. I don’t blame them for only focusing on domestic targets for this exact reason, the striker they ultimately chosen essentially had to be risk-free.
Wissa scored 19 goals for Brentford last season and has scored 49 goals in 149 appearances for the club. I don’t think he’s technically the best, but he doesn’t need to be; he provides output and that’s what The Magpies need.
His versatility to play across the front three is also a positive. The only negative again is the price, £55m for a 28-year-old who turns 29 later this week and is in the final of year of his contract is far from ideal.
I agree with the club’s decision to ultimately pay what Brentford wanted for Wissa, though they should never have gotten into this position, it makes us look weak negotiators. Solid signing overall and again lowers the average age of the squad, exciting to see a new number 9 in black and white.
**Park Seung-Soo –** Undisclosed from Suwon Bluewings.
Ranking 8.5/10
Wow, does this lad look promising! I’ll admit when I first heard about this, I thought it was a move that played on public relations to help expand our brand in South Korea – completely wrong.
Although we’ve only seen him a handful of times in short cameos, he has looked more than capable of being involved with the first-team. Park genuinely looked like Newcastle’s biggest attacking threat in pre-season. His confidence to take on a player really shone through alongside his impressive first touch, ball control and mazy dribbling and he’s only 18-year-old.
A quality find from the South Korean second vision, a real project player. Hopefully he continues to develop with our u21’s and is given a chance to play with the senior squad in cup competitions.
**Antonio Cordero** – Free from Malaga CF.
Ranking 8/10
Although we haven’t seen him play for us just yet, Cordero massively impressed in Malaga’s senior side last season and in the Under-21 Euros this year.
Newcastle done extremely well to beat Barcelona and Real Madrid who both reportedly made their own attempts to sign the 18-year-old winger. Another exciting project player who hopefully can develop for Belgian side Westerlo this season.
The outgoings
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Traditionally, Newcastle have been very poor sellers, before last summer the club’s most expensive sale was letting Andy Carroll go to Liverpool for £35m back in 2011. This has been one of the marquee reasons they have been unable to spend as much as the likes of the “top six”, revenue aside.
So as much as The Magpies had to improve their squad this summer, it was just as crucial to get rid of fringe players, to free up their wage budget and future proof PSR capacities for upcoming windows. Steve Nickson has led on talks for all outgoings this summer and has been excellent.
**Sean Longstaff** – £12m + £3m in add ons to Leeds United.
Good fee for the 27-year-old who had fell down in the pecking order of central midfielders. Likeable character, who always gave 100% but absolutely the correct decision to sell him this summer, with only one year left on his contract. Technically he was never at the level he needed to be to consistently make an impact and was too safe in the build-up, hopefully he has a successful season at Elland Road.
**Callum Wilson** – Free to West Ham.
A true servant to the club, scoring 49 goals in 130 appearances. However, his physical drop off in the last two seasons has been significant and although the club offered him a pay-as-you play contract it was the correct decision to sell and free up some additional wage budget.
**Isaac Hayden –** Free to QPR
Very happy for the 30-year-old, who last made an appearance for the club in 2021, for getting his preferred move back to QPR. Unfortunately, the defensive-midfielder was not at the level Newcastle needed. Though despite his technical ability being capped he was one of the most passionate players I’ve seen put on the shirt and again was a great servant for the club, especially in the Championship.
**Martin Dubravka** – Undisclosed to Burnley.
Right decision for both parties. The Slovakian who is turning 37-year-old next year would have been third choice this season if he didn’t depart. Another great servant who had impressive spells on Tyneside, I’ll always remember his debut against Manchester United!
**Alexander Isak** – £130m to Liverpool
Newcastle’s star striker, Yasir Al-Rumayyan’s favourite player, arguably the best centre-forward in the world has managed to force his dream move to Liverpool. The saga of the summer finally ended at midnight on Sunday when the club agreed a fee of £130m for the Swede.
In short do I think it was the right decision? Yes. However, it’s not as simple as that, this goes way deeper. PIF have made themselves look weak and this sets a precedent for the future about player power. They had the chance all summer to block Isak’s move to Liverpool, and they said that was the plan, but ultimately, they caved, and there was a feeling they would all along. N
The positive of all this is of course, the news, noise, mood that has hung over them all summer has now disappeared, and everyone associated with the club can move on. The Premier league record deal also grants Newcastle plenty of PSR headway for the next three windows.
As a result, Newcastle will seriously assess the state of play come the new year – they have the money to do so and can act if fresh blood is needed. He gave fans many memories but his legacy has been forever tarnished.
**Matt Targett** – Season-long loan deal to Middlesborough.
Newcastle currently have adequate cover in the LB position – Lewis Hall, Tino Livramento, Dan Burn and Alex Murphy are all options Howe has at his disposal.
We’re still paying the bulk of his wages, but a loan deal makes sense for both parties. Most fans seem to forget the impact Targett had when he first joined from Aston Villa, in fact that same season he was voted player’s player of the year by them.
However, he since worsened after his initial six-month loan spell. The 29-year-old has missed near 60 games for the club due to injury and he can no longer be relied on to deliver the level we need. Hopefully a permanent move comes his way next year.
**Odysseas Vlachodimos** – Season-long loan deal to Sevilla
Very little to be said on this one, was never going to play this season despite initially being told he could fight for the no.1 spot. Was only brought in to satisfy PSR and will likely leave the club permanently next year. Also, free’s up a small margin of the wage budget.
What next for Newcastle in the market?
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NUFCBLOG understands at least two central midfielders were looked at late in the window, however, this was merely planning for the worst case scenario after fears last week that Sandro Tonali and Joelinton were facing spells on the sidelines.
Though going forward, an addition of a central midfielder is likely, especially a more attacking-minded one who is able to break down defences. They retain an interest in Kobbie Mainoo, however, that deal looked more like an opportunity presenting itself this summer at a lower price. Man United have no intentions to sell the 20-year-old and if he gets back into the starting XI at Old Trafford it will be difficult to pull off.
As exclusively revealed by NUFC Blog early in the window, [Amir Richardson was tracke](https://www.nufcblog.co.uk/2025/07/03/exclusive-newcastle-eyeing-amir-richardson-with-potential-exits-on-the-cards/)d extensively last season by the the club’s scouting department, so it remains to be seen if they will continue to watch the tall and talented midfielder.
If Targett does depart next summer, which is more than likely as his contract is up for renewal, Newcastle will likely look to bring in another left-back, with Burn now being solely used as a centre-back, coupled with the strong possibility of Kieran Trippier leaving next year.
This would mean Livramento moving back to the right side of defence, leaving Howe short of depth and Hall our only fit and ready left-back, which seems irresponsible given his age and recent injury.
NUFCBLOG also understands that Newcastle may revisit a deal for James Trafford in future windows, especially with Gianluigi Donnarumma expected to claim the number one spot for City after a deadline day move.
The futures of Harvey Barnes, Joe Willock, Jamaal Lascelles are also uncertain heading into next year.