Newcastle may have the richest owners in world football, but they, like all other clubs, must follow Financial Fair Play guidelines.
If the Premier League did not impose such limitations, teams like Newcastle, Chelsea, and Manchester City would just dominate the entire English top flight, and things would become extremely boring very soon.
Eddie Howe’s side has been crippled by injuries this season, revealing exactly how little depth the manager has in his first-team roster.
Newcastle need to assess FFP this summer
To bring that up to an acceptable level and put Newcastle in a position to be genuine Premier League title contenders, they will need to spend a significant amount of money, which will not be as easy as it once was given the Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability rules.
Indeed, there have been frequent predictions that the club may have to trade a key player, even before Joelinton recently signed a new contract that will keep him at the club until 2028.
“No decision has been made on whether Newcastle will need to sell a major player this summer because of Financial Fair Play,” Fabrizio Romano told CaughtOffside during his Daily Briefing.
“This is something Newcastle will talk about at the conclusion of the season, when their strategy will be obvious, whether they are in Europe or not.
“Discussions will depend on multiple factors, but especially on how much they need to make as profit for FFP.”
If it is ultimately decided that players such as Bruno Guimaraes, Alexander Isak, or Anthony Gordon must be moved to balance the books, Newcastle will be in an unpleasant situation in terms of their aspirations.
One step forward, two steps back, so to speak.
However, this is where the sporting director’s stated knowledge should be put to use.
Along with Howe and Jason Tindall et al., that sector of the club must be aware of player availability and cost, among other things, in order to collaborate while maintaining consistency on the pitch.
