Even as the curtain closed on an eventful campaign for Newcastle United, which included winning the Carabao Cup and returning to the Champions League, there’s seemingly no rest for Eddie Howe and the club’s hierarchy.
It was reported on Sunday evening that Howe was already in discussions with higher-ups over the club’s transfer activity in the upcoming window, which is expected to be huge, particularly compared to the last three windows.
And according to a fresh report, we now look to have a clear idea of some players who we’d love to recruit ahead of the 25/26 season.
Writing in The Athletic, Newcastle Correspondent Chris Waugh has highlighted a number of quality additions who have cropped up regularly in recent recruitment discussions.
This includes Burnley stopper James Trafford, Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi, Brentford winger Bryan Mbeumo, Nottingham Forest’s Anthony Elanga and Ipswich’s Liam Delap.
It’s no secret that we’ve identified four areas within the squad that look set to be prioritised, with a great portion of our transfer budget set to be spent on a goalkeeper, centre-back, right winger and striker.
Champions League football looks to have been as imperative as we all thought it would be, with the allure and financial riches of Europe’s top club competition being just what the club needed to finalise their list of top targets.
Alongside Guehi, Waugh comments that “Ipswich Town striker Liam Delap, Nottingham Forest winger Anthony Elanga, Brentford forward Bryan Mbeumo and Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford have featured prominently during transfer discussions.”
Much like how Real Madrid swooped in and signed Huijsen whilst ourselves and a number of other Premier League sides were negotiating with the player, we can expect similarly tough competition if we want to sign all of our top targets.
Bryan Mbeumo stands out in particular, as his 20 goal return in the league, and Brentford’s reported £50m valuation for the Cameroonian has already attracted the interest of Manchester United. And it would be unwise to suggest they’re the only other club interested.
In the case of James Trafford and Liam Delap, they too have other potential suitors, but lower prices and the prospect of breaking into our first team for years to come under Howe’s guidance make us an incredibly appealing option.
And then there’s Anthony Elanga, who has only seen his stock go up since we reportedly tried to sign him at the very end of last summer’s window.
Nottingham Forest won’t want to be letting their star player go, and it’s here that Sporting Director Paul Mitchell and the scouting department can best work their magic on identifying a ready-made alternative from abroad.