According to journalist Graeme Bailey (via TBR Football), Newcastle United plans to put three long-standing players on the market in January to boost transfer funds.
The January transfer window is just around the corner and Newcastle United will be expected to get some business done after a disappointing summer of business.
New sporting director Paul Mitchell will be tasked with the challenge to find players that can make an instant impact on Tyneside to ensure the club can comfortably compete for one of the European qualification spots inside the top seven of the Premier League.
The Magpies are currently eighth in the top flight ahead of their return to action on Monday evening against West Ham United, and the fact that they are just one point off the top four challengers puts them in a great position to secure European football for next season.
Having said that, it is still early days and not even a third of league fixtures have been played at this point, so maintaining their form of recent weeks and remaining as competitive as possible in the remaining games of 2024 will be imperative to keep them on track.
January does present a great opportunity for Mitchell and the recruitment team to implement their strategy for snapping up the services of players that can add both depth and improved quality in weak positions, with the right winger role the reported pressing priority for the North East outfit.
However, with financial restrictions and regulations to adhere to, Newcastle will equally need to be ruthless with the assets in their squad that are not considered part of the long-term future and offloading them to boost transfer funds.
Transfer expert Graeme Bailey has now revealed exclusively to TBR Football that Miguel Almiron, Callum Wilson and Kieran Trippier are the trio who will be offered out in the January market.
The publication claim that Newcastle are keen to acquire a central defender and a right-sided attacker in the new year, but manager Eddie Howe has no interest in parting ways with his players unless they are instantly replaceable.
It is further noted that Paraguayan winger Almiron is already on the lookout for a new opportunity to seal his exit from Tyneside in the coming weeks, and his agent Daniel Campos spoke to TYC Sports to give an insight into the player’s situation:
“He has a valid contract. The link was renewed last year for three more (June 2027), and with the new owners of the club,” Campos explained.
“Miguel does not despair about money issues or doing crazy things. If there is an offer from a team, we will go through the appropriate channels.”
Will Newcastle sign players in January?
There is no doubt that the project at Newcastle is one of ambition that is driven to compete with the most elite clubs to win trophies and sustain success in the long term, but it won’t be easy.
The Geordies are all too familiar with the Financial Fair Play regulations and have been some of the most high profile victims of the restrictions clubs who try to compete with the highest spending and highest profiting clubs in the Premier League.
It isn’t just a whimsical dream though that Newcastle can compete as it was clearly demonstrated when they got to the league cup final in early 2023, and earned Champions League qualification finishing fourth in the top flight at the end of the 2022/23 season.
However, they have not been able to maintain those dizzying heights due to a lack of ruthless recruitment, though there is a hope that Mitchell can use his experience and knowledge to get them ahead of their rivals with shrewd talent acquisition to help them bounce back and become a regular in European competition.
It would be very surprising to not see Newcastle get some business done in the January market, but bringing in the right profile of player at the right price will be challenging, as clubs will be much more difficult to work with as losing proven players mid-season is not an ideal situation.
Selling the likes of Almiron and Trippier would be the best pathway to being able to make tempting offers in 2025, so getting those outgoings confirmed in the immediate when the four-week transfer market opens will be absolutely crucial.
With that being said, it will be an interesting start to 2025 for the Magpies and any opportunity to strengthen the weaker positions will be a huge boost for the second half of the season.
