Newcastle's sporting director Paul Mitchell explains transfer failures

09/06/2024 05:00 AM

The new transfer honcho made clear Newcastle won't surrender to the "Toon Tax"

Newcastle United's sporting director, Paul Mitchell, spoke to the media for the first time on Wednesday, September 4, and touched on many relevant topics including the Magpies' failure to sign any impactful player during the summer transfer window, his first in charge of business.

Without naming names, Mitchell discussed the failed pursuit of Crystal Palace defender and England international Marc Guehi and discussed the broader recruitment strategy going forward.

The attempt to sign Guehi, who was valued at £70 million by Palace, infamously ended without a deal. Mitchell, however, believes this decision sends an important message about Newcastle's future approach to transfers.

Basically, Mitchell defended the failure to get Guehi as a case of Newcastle no longer being willing to pay over the market value of players, referred to as the "Toon Tax" in the transfer market.

Mitchell explained that while the club's ambition remains high under Saudi ownership, there is a need to adopt a more "sustainable" and "smarter" transfer strategy mostly because of the limitations imposed by the Premier League's PSR system.

This new strategy, which is still getting cooked, will include finding players at a fair value and avoiding being drawn into overpaying for already-developed and world-known talent.

"We probably were too narrow, but coming in mid-July, it's not my strategy to control, it's my strategy to support," Mitchell said when asked how much of an impact he made after arriving in Newcastle with the transfer window already open and ongoing.

Mitchell also highlighted the financial reality of Newcastle's situation, pointing out that the club has invested £250 million over the last two and a half years while not making many high-profit sales.

The sporting director stressed that Newcastle's ambition to compete at the top level remains intact, with European qualification the goal for this and upcoming seasons.