Newcastle suffered yet another transfer setback from a foreign team, and they should watch the first windows Manchester City and Chelsea have had to draw inspiration from

When Newcastle became the richest club in the world at the end of 2021, many expected a wave of transfers in January as the Magpies were finally lucky enough to have a war chest.

However, it didn’t quite turn out that way, as although they did announce the signing of former Tottenham star Kieren Trippier in a deal worth £ 15million to Atletico Madrid, they are struggling to secure signings elsewhere.

Looking relegation in the face, Newcastle are desperate to provide defensive reinforcements, but with Lille maintaining a daring valuation of £ 45million, the Magpies are even starting to see themselves as left out of a deal.

And with their inability to strike a deal with Reims for their 19-year-old striker Hugo Ekitike, only further humiliates the new owners.

Newcastle’s struggles are a far cry from the joys Manchester City and Chelsea experienced when they secured their own takeovers in 2003 and 2008, and their debut record provided the perfect case study for the Magpies to follow.

What’s wrong with Newcastle?

Attracting top talent is never easy when you’re sitting on just one Premier League win, and their shock home loss to Cambridge United in the FA Cup won’t help matters either.

And admittedly, the introduction of FFP and modern-day mass inflation changed things slightly from the takeover of City and Chelses.

But while City and Chelsea seemed to have a vision and were able to immediately identify the profile of the player they wanted to bring in, Newcastle looked lost and disjointed, showing interest in almost anyone available.

Trippier may be an experienced signing, but other than that, Newcastle are looking for an array of unproven talent from various leagues and should prioritize deals in England, just as Chelsea and City did mostly at the start of their new one. property.

What business has Chelsea done?

In Chelsea’s first full season with Roman Abramovich as owner, they’ve made an abundance of top-tier acquisitions such as Hernan Crespo, Adiran Mutu and Claude Makelele, but it’s their prioritization from England that has helped lay the groundwork.

They signed experienced Manchester United’s Juan Sebastian Veron and struck a deal with much-loved Damien Duff who excelled for Blackburn at the time.

But they also gave a new opportunity to many young and hungry stars who waited for their chance on the big stage, as Glen Johnson and Joe Cole were recruited from West Ham, and Scott Parker and Wayne Bridge also had opportunities.

Newcastle have been linked with a mix of Premier League outcasts and rising stars, and they are expected to look in the league for talent.

What business did City do?

City had a bit more grace period as citizens were initially taken care of before the big one, as Sheikh Mansour stepped in to clean up the mess created by Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

It was Shinawatra who initially took over in 2007 until his accounts were seized by the Thai military when nearly £ 100million had already been spent.

Mansour came in to take control and even signed Robinho on day one when they arrived at the end of the transfer window.

City therefore had to wait for the January transfer window to splash their wealth, like Newcastle, but they also opted for a similar approach to Chelsea.

Nigel De Jong was the only one to sign that window from a foreign club, and City opted for a Premier League experience as they made deals for Shay Given, Craig Bellamy and Wayne Bridge as well.

Where does Howe go from here?

Newcastle have learned they can’t risk spending money unnecessarily, but to lay the groundwork they should look to recruit players who have a proven track record in the Premier League, or at least those who are comfortable in England.

As Joelinton’s big-money signing has proven, foreign leagues can be a major bet, and Newcastle should look internally like City and Chelsea have done to stabilize their Premier League status and lay the groundwork for a reconstruction.

It’s no easy task in January to reward the talents of your league rivals, but there are plenty of stars going above and beyond who could do a job for Newcastle and thrive under a fresh start.

With three weeks of window remaining, Howe has his work cut out for him, but there’s still plenty of time to get it right.