Newcastle United are under pressure to qualify for the Champions League with one game left in the Premier League season.
The Magpies currently sit third in the Premier League table, but risk dropping out of the top five at the very end of the season following their defeat to Arsenal on Sunday.
Results elsewhere were not favourable for Newcastle United either, with Chelsea, Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest all winning. The gap to seventh place is now just one point.
However, Eddie Howe will take comfort in the fact that he faces an Everton side with nothing to play for at St James’ Park on the final day of the season.
Newcastle are still the frontrunners for Champions League football, but the added pressure of the race going down to the final day means fans will be concerned over whether the Magpies will be able to make it over the line.
With a busy summer transfer window expected, Newcastle’s top targets want Champions League football. Players like Bryan Mbeumo and Marc Guehi are included in those top targets, so qualification is essential.
With Newcastle now preparing for their final game of the season, a journalist has stated what will happen in the transfer window if the Magpies do not secure a return to Europe’s top competition.
Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
Newcastle United’s transfer stance if they do not qualify for the Champions League
While the gap between third and seventh in the Premier League table is razor thin, Newcastle are still being backed to qualify for the Champions League.
MORE NEWCASTLE STORIES
Danny Murphy said Newcastle will beat Everton on Sunday, while former Premier League ace Michael Dawson already thinks Newcastle have done enough.
However, in the event that Newcastle do fail to qualify, it will completely change Paul Mitchell’s approach to the summer transfer window.
In his weekly Q&A with fans on the Athletic, Chris Waugh was asked about extra income from the Champions League and whether PSR is a worry ahead of the transfer window.
Waugh confirmed that Newcastle will not be tied down by PSR this summer, and Champions League football would give Mitchell a bigger budget to bring players in at Newcastle.
If Newcastle end up in the Europa League or even the Conference League, then Mitchell will look to sign younger talents instead of established players like Mbeumo or Guehi.
Who has Paul Mitchell already signed at Newcastle United?
The last three transfer windows have been fairly negative for Newcastle, with no meaningful first-team arrivals. Dan Ashworth was still the sporting director for the January 2024 transfer window, and Paul Mitchell joined in the summer but failed to make any signings for the first team.
In his first season at the club, Mitchell has opted to focus on youth recruitment rather than signings for the starting XI.
Vakhtang Salia agreed to join Newcastle in late 2024 and will complete his move when he turns 18 in August.
In January, Mitchell signed Kyle Fitzgerald and Baran Yildiz at Newcastle. The pair have made a great start with Newcastle’s under-18s.
Additionally, young winger Antonio Cordero has agreed to join Newcastle this summer on a free transfer. Reports stated that Cordero rejected Real Madrid and Barcelona for Newcastle, an early sign of Mitchell’s persuasive power.