Eddie Howe speaks to his Newcastle United players
Eddie Howe speaks to his Newcastle United players
Premier League clubs have voted to change the dates of the summer transfer window, with Newcastle United one of the few top flight sides who may be able to benefit from the altered trading period.
Sunday June 1 will see the window open, before closing again Tuesday June 10. Six days later the window will reopen and stay that way until Monday September 1. Monday 16 June. The reason for the seemingly random shutdown in the middle of June is due to Fifa whose rules state a window can only remain open for a maximum of 89 days each summer.
The 10 day-trading period will give Premier League concerned about PSR the chance to do some panic-free trading, rather than being forced into a late flurry of outgoing activity as seen in 2024. Last year the window opened on June 14, with Newcastle, Chelsea, Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest, Leicester City and Everton trading £323m worth of players in the final 10 days of the month to avoid PSR penalties.
This time around, Newcastle's financial situation looks healthier - but outgoings can't explicitly be ruled out, despite club chiefs consistently expressing their desire to keep United's biggest stars on Tyneside. The headline figures of the club's 23/24 accounts show Newcastle saw a turnover increase of £70m [£250.3m to £320.3m], ultimately making a post-tax loss of £11.1m - down from the £70m+ losses of the two years prior.
Newcastle are constantly evolving to ensure their revenue streams are strengthened. Additional sponsorships have been brought on board, more corporate matchday offerings can be found inside St James' Park and merchandise sales continue to increase. However, the 23/24 accounts show other recent boosts in the form of player sales.
£69.8m - £67m more than the £2.8m of 2022/23 - was seen on the most recent balance sheet, mainly arising from the exits of Elliot Anderson, Yankuba Minteh and also Allan Saint-Maximin in the summer of 2023.
With the club now on a better standing, financially, after the uncertainty of the last summer window, there will be no late frenzy to offload stars to fend off potential penalties. Instead, Eddie Howe's side could kick off June with an early arrival or two, to start the summer on a high.