With just over a week to go until the transfer window closes, Newcastle could have a busy end to the summer as Eddie Howe tries to finalise his squad for the Premier League season.
The Magpies have signed five players thus far. Lewis Hall, who spent last season on loan at St James’ Park, has joined on a permanent deal from Chelsea for £28million plus £7m in add-ons. Lloyd Kelly and John Ruddy have arrived on free transfers from Bournemouth and Birmingham, while William Osula has signed from Sheffield United for £15m and Odysseas Vlachodimos completed a £20m move from Nottingham Forest.
As for those heading out of the doors, Elliot Anderson has moved to Forest for £35m and Brighton have signed winger Yankuba Minteh in a deal worth around £30m. Meanwhile, Matt Richie, Jeff Hendrick, Paul Dummett and Loris Karius are among the others to leave Newcastle this summer.
Despite this, there is no doubt more work to be done before the window closes at 11pm on Friday, August 30. This is both from an incoming and outgoing point of view, with certain positions needing to be strengthened, as well as players that could do with being moved on to pastures new.
Here, the Chronicle takes a look at what is on Newcastle’s to-do list for the remainder of the transfer window….
Sign a centre-half
With Sven Botman and Jamaal Lascelles still out having suffered ACL injuries and Fabian Schar now suspended following his red card against Southampton, Dan Burn is the only fit, recognised centre-back available to Eddie Howe for the trip to Bournemouth this weekend.
It’s clear Newcastle need another central defender and Marc Guehi is the one that does seem the perfect fit, though Crystal Palace appear to value him at £75m. If they cannot sign Guehi, an alternative should be looked at, such as the likes of Edmond Tapsoba, Axel Disasi, Trevoh Chalobah or Joe Gomez.
Sign a right-winger
Another position that does need strengthening is on the right-wing. Jacob Murphy started in that area for the win over Southampton, but Newcastle need someone who can provide more if they want to challenge for Europe again this season. The same can be said about Miguel Almiron.
The player that does seem like the perfect fit is Noni Madueke, who could leave Chelsea before the end of the window after they signed Pedro Neto. Raheem Sterling could also be an option with the 29-year-old set to depart the Blues this month, after he was left out of their opening weekend defeat against Manchester City.
Almiron must be sold
If the Magpies sell a right-winger before the end of the window then Almiron must be the man that is sold. The Paraguayan was an unused substitute against Southampton and has dropped down the pecking order. Should Newcastle sign a player in that position then Almiron would move down to third-choice.
The 30-year-old is viewed someone that could leave but Newcastle won’t sell him cheaply, after MLS side Charlotte FC saw a bid rejected for him last week. It’s reported that the club want around £15.6m to sanction the departure of Almiron and that would represent decent business.
Resolve Kieran Trippier’s future
The future of Kieran Trippier is something that does need to be addressed come the end of the window. Trippier has one year left on his contract at St James’ Park and was an unused substitute in the win over Southampton. The 33-year-old played 45 minutes for Newcastle Under 21s against Sunderland on Monday.
There has been much speculation over whether Trippier will be playing his football after this month’s deadline – and a decision does need to be made soon amid interest from Saudi Arabia. If he does stay, Trippier should sign a new contract to limit the risk of him leaving for free next summer.
Keep golden trio
If Newcastle want to be successful this season, they must keep a hold of Anthony Gordon, Alexander Isak and Bruno Guimaraes amid interest from other Premier League clubs. Those three – alongside others of course – are pivotal to Eddie Howe’s side and are no doubt different makers.
Gordon has been linked with a move to Liverpool but Newcastle will be desperate to keep him after he scored 11 goals and added 10 assists in 35 Premier League appearances last season. Isak is of interest to Chelsea and Arsenal, while Guimaraes has been tipped to join the likes of Manchester City and Liverpool.
Trim unwanted fringe players
As well as letting go of Almiron, Jamal Lewis, Ryan Fraser, Isaac Hayden and Martin Dubravka are among those that could leave this summer. Lewis is behind Hall, Matt Targett and even Burn in the pecking order at left-back, while Fraser spent the second half of last season at Southampton and has seen his game time limited.
Hayden doesn’t appear to have a future on Tyneside after spending some time on loan at QPR last season, while Dubravka is behind Nick Pope and with Ruddy and Vlachodimos arriving, it does feel like the Slovakian needs to leave in search of regular football.
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