During the course of the offseason, largely due to an increase in monetary revenue, Premier League clubs have invested heavily in new talent. Attempting to break into the top four, push for the top eight or retain Premier league status – no club has stood still in the market. Newcastle United have amassed a net spend totalling £50million pounds. Five new recruits make up Steve McClaren’s new look Newcastle but how does it compare to the rest of the league? I want to look at the acquisitions of Newcastle and compare to opposition. How did the Magpies actually fair in what has become a very difficult market?
Aleksander Mitrovic, age 20, £13.5million
Serbian international, dubbed one of the most exciting strikers in Europe, Mitrovic was signed with a lot of potential. Having started in the 0-0 draw at Old Trafford last week, Mitrovic displayed a lot of attributes many fans will grow to love. He has a huge hunger and desire to contribute to the team. Playing largely isolated and alone for long periods due to the Red Devil’s dominance whilst in possession Mitrovic never lost hope. Continually looking to press and offer a focal point Mitrovic worked tirelessly, chasing lost causes. A rare chance was presented to the young Serbian, with only the width of the crossbar denying him a glorious headed goal. Ground was lost on Saturday after being unfairly dismissed against Arsenal. Now serving a three-match suspension (unless an appeal is launched and is successful) Mitrovic will spend time on the training ground learning – a learning curve which will help him understand that opposition players in the Premier League will look to deceive and con referees to influence decisions in their favour. Remembering the lad is only 20-years-old, still raw, naive and impressionable. Mitrovic possess all the attributes to become a very popular player amongst fans. Early signs are good, having previously scored in the Champions League as well as international level, you feel once he scores his first goal, many more will follow.
Comparing Mitrovic to what opposition Premier League clubs have spent in the transfer market:
Crystal Palace: Connor Wickham, £10million
Tottenham: Clinton N’Jie, £20million
Liverpool: Christian Benteke, £30million
West Brom: Salomon Rondon, £15million
Leicester: Shinji Okazaki, £7million
Stoke: Joselu, £8million
Cast your eyes over the opposition’s purchases. Newcastle can be proud of the acquisition of Mitrovic.
Clinton N’jie has played made only 37 first team appearances in his relatively short career – is that amount of games worthy of such a substantial price-tag given the demands and pressures on a striker in the modern game? Connor Wickham whilst playing over 70 games for local rivals Sunderland scored only 11 goals, is that output and efficiency worthy of a seven-figure transfer fee?
Christian Benteke is a player Newcastle United were never in the running to acquire. Huge transfer fee and high earnings made such a deal impossible. Benteke in a very poor Aston Villa side scored goals consistently. Benteke and Mitrovic, however, have very similar attributes. One can only ask in a few years with more experience under his belt can Mitrovic succeed Benteke and go on to be one of the countries leading marksmen? The potential is certainly there to do so.
Okazaki and Rondon have scored a solitary Premier league goal each, whilst Joselu is still looking to open his account. Players are unique, some burst onto the scene whilst others take time to settle. Having watched both Okazaki and Joselu, I suspect both will be happy to score ten Premier League goals. Without wanting to display a bias element, I honestly feel Mitrovic has more to his game. Despite being young, Mitrovic is a well-rounded player, with skills many don’t give him enough credit for.
Rondon could potentially be a very notable addition to the Premier League. Having represented Venezuela 41 times as well as contributing goals everywhere he’s been, the lad certainly has ability. However, Rondon has never stayed at any club longer than two years. Is Rondon using West Brom as a platform for a more lucrative opportunity? Zenit St Petersburg are regulars in the Champions League, propelled by billionaires with oil money – the decision to move to a team who look to maintain Premier League status as a priority is certainly a strange one.
Florian Thauvin, age 22, £14.5million
(£6million should you deduct Cabella’s future obligatory fee for moving to Marseille)
Scouted for many years since bursting onto the scene at Bastia by chief scout Graham Carr, Thauvin has finally made the move to Tyneside. A winger who is quick, direct, technically superb whilst full of promise – Newcastle fans have seen only brief glimpses of what the talented Frenchman has to offer. A short cameo resulted in him nearly snatching all three points for Newcastle against Manchester United. Having failed to connect to Cisse’s cross by a matter of inches. A very pleasing full debut, albeit against lesser opposition, Thauvin displayed his ability, notably at dead ball situations assisting 3 of the 4 goals scored whilst scoring the other himself, walking away with the Man of the Match award. French Journalists have mocked Newcastle over the deal, citing his attitude as a potential pitfall, however, Newcastle fans look forward to seeing more of what the lad has to offer.
How does Thauvin compare to other recent purchases from across the league:
Aston Villa: Jordan Ayew, £10million
Bournemouth: Max Gradel, £7million
Crystal Palace: Bakary Sako, free
Liverpool: Roberto Firmino, £30million
Stoke: Xherdan Shaqiri, £12million
Swansea: Andre Ayew, free
West Ham: Dimitri Payet, £14 million
Newcastle badly lacked creativity last season, so they went into the transfer market targetting a winger, a player who would hug the touchline, making the pitch as wide as possible and create chances for strikers. As I look at what other clubs purchased it’s fair to say none of the aforementioned are traditional wingers. Modern football has seen the creation of a new position, the wing forward/inside forward. Players who will look to cut inside and contribute offensively as opposed to being a primary creative threat. Players like this look for space in between the lines and pockets of space between defenders. Recently departed Remy Cabella was this kind of player and it didn’t work out for him.
Andre Ayew has taken the Premier League by storm, 3 goals in his opening 4 games have seen the recent free transfer acquisition propel Swansea up the league and the player looks at home with the demands of the Premier League. A free transfer however is very misleading. Swansea, as opposed to paying a transfer fee, are paying agents and the player himself a huge signing on fee. Fee’s like this are not something Newcastle ever look to pay, which explains why they moved away from the deal. Details of Ayew’s deal emerged. Ayew will be paid £8million signing on fee, broken up over the duration of his contract, as well as £100,000-a-week. Should Ayew move before the end of his contract Swansea must pay the remaining signing on fee in full. Such deals whilst may work for some are not appealing to me. Bringing the lad in, whilst talented, would make him the highest earner at Newcastle by over £40,000 – such deals could be detrimental to the overall harmony of the squad. The scenario of players being disgruntled due to disparities in salary is not a scenario I’d want to see. Swansea have stuck their neck out and have been rewarded so far.
Shaqiri threw possibly the biggest curveball of the summer, joining Stoke from Inter Milan. A Champions League winner, Swiss international carrying a huge pedigree. Newcastle fans took to social media questioning why the club didn’t make a move. Having studied Shaqiri’s career, the former Bayern man has a string of injuries seeing him miss large portions of campaigns. Given that Newcastle have had multiple injury prone players in the past and currently have issues with Siem de Jong, it would be illogical to lavish money on a player with large question marks over his continual fitness. Should Shaqiri remain fit he’s a player which can excite fans of football.
Georginio Wijnaldum, age 24, £14.5million
World Cup semi-finalist, Dutch international, Eredivisie Player of the Year, Eredivisie winner, European experience – Wijnaldum, despite being a relatively young player, has amassed a lot of experience in such a short period of time. Signed to bring creativity to a lacking Newcastle midfield, Wijnaldum has made an immediate impact – scoring a stunning header on his league debut. Wijnaldum has a big future on Tyneside. Technically exceptional with great poise and balance, the fans have already taken to the Dutchman too – their new hero. Newcastle’s opening fixtures have been without doubt tricky and difficult encounters, facing four of last season’s top eight, including two of the top four. Wijnaldum has not looked out of place against any opposing player.
Wijnaldum joins Newcastle as the most expensive of the summer recruits, other clubs chose the following:
Aston Villa: Jordan Vertout, £7million
Crystal Palace: Yohan Cabaye, £10million
Southampton: Jordy Clasie, £10million
Stoke: Ibrahim Afellay, free
Watford: Etienne Capoue, £10million
A variety of players all costing around the same transfer fee, fans must surely applaud Newcastle as I feel they acquired the best of the bunch. Newcastle were looking for a creative entity – they got that and much more. Comparing Wijnaldum to some of the midfield players who have moved to the Premier League, such as Jordy Clasie, would make little sense, as they play different roles to that of Gini. However, Yohan Cabaye will play a role similar to Wijnaldum.
Cabaye left Newcastle acrimoniously after going on strike to force through a move to Paris Saint-Germain. Having sat on the bench for nearly 18 months and the threat of missing next summer’s European Championships his primary agenda, Cabaye made the move back across the Channel. Having signed for Palace earning £100,000 per week, rejoining Pardew has seen him playing consistently. Cabaye is a player sections of the Newcastle fans wanted to see return but, in my opinion, shunning such a deal and signing a younger, hungrier international with a huge future was by far a better move.
Chancel Mbemba, Age 21, £8million
Joining team mate Mitrovic from Belgian club RSC Anderlecht, Mbemba like the others has stepped in and performed excellently in his opening few games for Newcastle. Much was reported about the need for Newcastle to sign a centre back and the club have acquired a player of quality. When keeping a clean sheet at Old Trafford, Mbemba was moved to right back, an unnatural position yet Mbemba was a rock, making the most tackles in the game and shackling Memphis Depay – a £30million signing who was expected to take the league by storm. Despite losing to Arsenal on Saturday, Mbemba showed his wide range of skills. Immensely quick, strong and a great reader of the game, Mbemba looks to have a very bright future at the heart of Newcastle’s defense. He is not the tallest when you compare other central defenders within the league, but he has a great leap which helps him deal with aerial deliveries. Central defenders of a certain quality are predominantly expensive acquisitions. The lack of World Class central defenders creates a hyperinflation in an already out of control market. Newcastle signing Mbemba for such a relatively low fee is delightful and credit should be offered to the board
As like the other summer recruits, looking at opposing clubs signings:
Aston Villa: Micah Richards, free
Everton: Ramino Funes Mori, £9.5million
Southampton: Virgil Van Dijk, £12.5million
Tottenham: Toby Alderweireld, £14million
West Ham: Angelo Ogbonna, £8million
Micah Richards has seen his career curtailed through injuries. Highly rated as a youngster and looking to be one to play internationally for years to come the ravaging injuries prevented such progress. Is Richards the sort of player Newcastle need? I would say no. Injuries are part and parcel of the game but with such major and consistent injuries it’s certainly not an Avenue I’d want to explore.
Ramino Funes Mori arrives from Argentina as an enigma. Many will never have heard of him (apart from Football Manager players), nevermind seen him in action so I think it would be unfair to make a judgment on the player.
Ogbonna arrived from Italian champions Juventus, an Italian international of good pedigree arrived in east London. Ogbonna was substituted after 35 minutes of a recent league fixture against Bournemouth. Given a torrid time and awash with fundamental errors, Ogbonna looked to have not adapted to the demands of the Premier League. A recent fixture against Liverpool saw West Ham keep a clean sheet with the Italian starring, acclimatization may see him become a good defender in what’s an unforgiving league however at his age and experience I’d have expected more.
Toby Alderweireld, made the move from Spain to Spurs having previously completed a loan deal at Southampton. The Saints were hugely disappointed at missing out on the Belgian international, who’d been a rock at the heart of their defense, helping the South Coast team propel themselves to the upper echelons of the league. Alderweireld is a highly talented international, however after spending £14.5million is the Big Belgian worth twice as much as Mbemba? I feel the fee was hyper inflated due to Premier League experience. Premier League experience is a trait used by pundits and media outlets to champion players. The Premier League is unlike any other league on the planet but doesn’t mean players cannot adjust to the rigors and demands. Looking at the deals Newcastle fans can be ecstatic at such a positive signing.
