Once a week (mostly) for an hour during the Premier League season, The Athletic’s Newcastle United subscribers can ask our writers covering the club for views and insight into what’s happening at St James’ Park — this was the first since the Carabao Cup final.
Here we have pulled together some of the questions and our answers from Monday’s edition of our Inside Newcastle live Q&A, which included queries about Eddie Howe’s importance, whether qualifying for the Champions League would give the club a greater chance of retaining their best players, and whether there is any truth concerning speculation linking Sandro Tonali with an exit.
Want to ask us anything Newcastle-related? Chris Waugh will be back on Monday at 2pm BST (9am EST) for another session.
Will Newcastle still need to sell a star player even if they qualify for the Champions League? — Omar K
Waugh: Newcastle will almost certainly not have to sell one of their star players if they qualify for the Champions League — or even if they fail to reach Europe’s premier competition, given the improvement in their PSR (the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules) position over the past 12 months.
That is not the same as saying an elite player will definitely not be sold, mind. Newcastle and Howe are desperate to keep their best players and add greater quality and depth. However, there is also an acceptance they have to become better traders in a PSR world and that, at some stage, it may be prudent to sell one of their top performers for a significant profit, if that will permit them to invest more widely and continue their growth.
Even Manchester City and Liverpool sell top players when they receive offers which are too good to resist — Julian Alvarez and Philippe Coutinho, for example — and which unlock expenditure.
Newcastle will resist all attempts to lure Alexander Isak away from Tyneside — it is highly unlikely anyone could make an offer high enough to even make the club begin to negotiate, never mind convince them to sell — and they are keen to retain their best players.
Yet, should a huge bid arrive for someone such as Anthony Gordon, Harvey Barnes or Bruno Guimaraes, and the player wants to explore the opportunity, then perhaps Newcastle will have a decision to make on whether they should cash in and oversee a wider overhaul.
Given PSR, are there any free transfers similar to Lloyd Kelly you are expecting Newcastle to sign? — Euan M
Waugh: The free-transfer market is being explored. Newcastle always look at potential bargains regardless of their financial situation but, given the benefits of bringing in a player without a transfer fee — even if it is never ‘free’, with wages, signing-on fees and agent commission counting towards PSR — it has become even more important.
Lille forward Jonathan David has been watched extensively and Newcastle are among many clubs monitoring his situation, while Everton striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin has featured in transfer discussions over recent seasons — a deal was in place for Yankuba Minteh to go the opposite way last June, only for it to collapse — and, given Callum Wilson is uncertain to be given a new contract, could yet turn out to be a like-for-like option.
Newcastle have been monitoring David (Olivier Chassignole/AFP)
Kelly was twice signed by the Howes — Eddie, the head coach, and Andy, Newcastle’s head of recruitment — and, although he struggled to find his form and did not break into the first XI consistently, the club are still set to make a huge profit on him.
Once his loan to Juventus becomes permanent, Newcastle’s PSR position moving forward will be greatly strengthened, meaning that signing has to be described as a “success”, even if in a pure footballing sense Kelly did not reach his potential.
Further deals of that ilk have been described as “no-brainers” by some club sources.
Any truth to reports suggesting Tonali wants to leave Newcastle and that Eberechi Eze could be his replacement? — Tony C
Waugh: So far, the Tonali speculation has been played down, both inside Newcastle and by those close to the player.
While fully respecting those reports, such a suggestion did seem odd. For a start, Italian clubs are being heavily linked with Tonali for obvious reasons, yet the financial strength of the Premier League and the price Newcastle would demand for the midfielder — in excess of the £55million ($72.4m at present exchange rates) they paid for him two years ago — makes it difficult to see how Serie A sides could afford him.
Also, although Tonali has shown his undisputed quality this season, some recruitment officials across Europe have privately suggested that clubs would be hesitant to invest such a huge figure now, given he has already served a 10-month suspension for gambling offences.
As for Eze, he is a player Newcastle admire, but the 26-year-old is stylistically different to Tonali, so he would not be a like-for-like replacement (as of yet, I have not heard that the Crystal Palace midfielder is among their summer targets).
Although I would caveat that by saying there is rarely smoke without fire, it is still the expectation that Tonali wants to remain on Tyneside for 2025-26 and will be here come the start of next season. That will become even more likely if Newcastle qualify for the Champions League.
What are the club’s plans for William Osula? He doesn’t seem to get many opportunities, despite Wilson looking likely to leave — Liam D
Waugh: Osula was always signed as a ‘project player’ and, although he turns 22 in August, he remains extremely raw. Jason Tindall worked with Osula at Sheffield United and saw immense potential in the forward and there was pretty much unanimous internal agreement that Newcastle should invest in him.
And he very much is an investment; a long-term one. Osula possesses a rare collection of attributes: height, pace, strength and technical ability. He requires significant refining, however, and the belief inside Newcastle is that Howe and his coaching staff will extract the maximum from Osula in time.
Osula was an unused sub against Man Utd (Stu Forster/Getty Images)
Earlier this season, Howe referenced Lewis Hall’s first-season struggles and subsequent improvement when describing Osula’s situation, and there are parallels. Yet Osula does not look to have adapted to Howe’s demands as swiftly as Hall did.
Clearly, the head coach does not yet trust Osula for long spells, given the forward has made only three starts overall, and just five substitute appearances in the Premier League since Boxing Day. Wilson may be ageing and may even leave this summer, but he knows what Howe expects of him on the pitch, something Osula is still learning.
There have been suggestions that Osula could be loaned out next season to gain greater experience, but his medium-term future may be influenced by which European competition Newcastle are in. He would play regularly in the UEFA Conference League and Howe could observe his development more closely, but he may struggle for game-time should Newcastle qualify for the Champions League.
I’ve been concerned for Eddie and his family. I’ve at times questioned Howe, not outspokenly, more small doubts, but right now, he feels completely and utterly irreplaceable. Even the thought of him not back for Palace is scary. Is there a manager in world football you would actually consider better for Newcastle? — Alex W
Waugh: Everyone will echo your sentiments towards Howe (he is recovering from pneumonia and will miss the next two matches). One of his greatest strengths, which has made him ideal for Newcastle, is his calmness and clarity of thought. He does not become distracted by the turbulence in mood of this jumpy club and instead dedicates himself to working almost incomprehensibly hard at the training ground.
But he has also astutely retuned the club’s mentality. Newcastle do not fear opponents anymore; they respect elite sides, but also go into matches against them believing they can win, regardless of whether that is at St James’ or on the road. And Howe has also tapped into Newcastle supporters’ aspirations, encouraging them to dream and always talking up the club, rather than trying to downplay expectations.
That is before we consider his magnificent record in the transfer market and, more importantly, on the pitch. If Howe wins a cup and takes this Newcastle squad back into the Champions League following the uncertainty of last summer and his inability to strengthen the first XI for three windows, he will have proven beyond any doubt that he is an exceptional head coach.
Not that Newcastle fans need convincing of that. I am not sure any other head coach could have achieved what Howe has in such a short space of time with the resources at his disposal and so, in that sense, no, I do not think there is anyone better suited to the position currently.
What is the difference, financially, between finishing third and fifth in the Premier League? — Roddy G
Waugh: While figures for 2024-25 have yet to be confirmed, last season, Premier League clubs earned approximately £1.7m per place for their UK merit payment and around £1.4m for the international merit payment, totalling £3.1m. So, theoretically, just for finishing two positions higher, Newcastle would receive an additional £6.2m (roughly), plus they would benefit from the riches the Champions League offers.
However, many of Newcastle’s sponsorship deals also contain bonuses, some of which may be linked to league position, so there may be further financial benefits for finishing third. The sums involved are not huge, but in a PSR world, every additional million makes a difference.
Newcastle climbed to fourth by beating Man Utd (Stu Forster/Getty Images)
Will Newcastle sign a second striker this summer to be a backup and competitive help to Isak? Any ideas who? — Andrew T
Waugh: Another striker is on the agenda. Newcastle are still in the process of whittling down long lists of targets, but they do largely know which positions they want to strengthen already and up front is one. Whether that turns out to be an out-and-out striker, or a versatile forward who can play in multiple positions — or there is even a possibility they could look to sign one of each — remains unclear.
Among those are David and Calvert-Lewin, which shows the different profiles being considered. David would expect significant game time and is unlikely to accept being Isak’s deputy, while Calvert-Lewin would perhaps be more comfortable as back-up.
But lots of others, both in the Premier League and across Europe, have been tracked. Ipswich Town’s Liam Delap has real admirers inside St James’ — and across England — while Matheus Cunha’s career has been followed closely by those inside Newcastle and he could be a versatile midfield/forward option with Premier League experience.
Who Newcastle end up pursuing will partly depend upon whether Wilson leaves — the club are yet to enact the one-year extension in his contract, which currently expires this summer — and how Osula develops between now and pre-season.
(Top photo: Sandro Tonali celebrates scoring against Manchester United; by George Wood via Getty Images)