In the Premier League this season, Newcastle United have often looked lethargic, particularly on their travels, with the Toon sat in an unsatisfactory 14th spot in the gruelling division.
Eddie Howe will, of course, hope he can hang onto his job post for the time being based on his past successes, which include a triumphant EFL Cup success just last season.
While fans have criticised the current ongoings at St James’ Park, Sky Sports’ Jamie Carragher has leapt to Howe’s defence over recent weeks, hailing the 47-year-old as “one of the greatest” managers the Tyneside club has ever had. True enough, but Newcastle are not doing well enough right now.
PIF have given the former Bournemouth boss huge financial backing PIF and results will need to turn around sharply, regardless of how fondly Howe has previously been held.
Ranking Newcastle's summer business of 2025
Newcastle edge into the top four when looking at the transfer spending of all 20 Premier League clubs this summer, with a whopping £250m spent, just eclipsing Ruben Amorim’s Manchester United.
A heavy wad of that money was splashed on landing Nick Woltemade at the £69m mark, which now comes in as being Newcastle’s most expensive incoming ever.
He has largely lived up to his standout transfer fee, too, minus a few no-show performances as of late, with Woltemade already up to six goals in all competitions.
While the towering German certainly ranks highly as far as 2025’s business is concerned, unfortunately, the same can’t be said for Yoane Wissa who must be ranked at the bottom of the pile.
Indeed, has seen more of the St James’ Park treatment room than the field of play since a £55m switch from Brentford was finalised.
Equally, Jacob Ramsey has seen more of the physio team and has not set the world alight on his arrival from Aston Villa, having left his boyhood employers behind for a hefty £43m. Still, having only been afforded one league start so far this season, plenty more will hopefully soon come from the promising Englishman.
Malick Thiaw, on the other hand, is Woltemade’s main rival for the title of being Newcastle’s best acquisition.
He hasn’t struggled one bit to make a spot in Howe’s first team his own, with the ex-AC Milan centre-back – who cost what now looks like a bargain £30m – already being hailed as the “future” of the Magpies by captain Bruno Guimaraes, having stood out in the Champions League against Athletic Club, winning all ten of his duels.
As is obvious from the above, though, it’s been very hit-and-miss on the transfer front by Howe and Co, with their biggest miss to date yet to be mentioned…
Newcastle must regret signing £100k-per-week flop
Howe will be relieved that the Woltemade deal has worked out for the most part, with the German’s arrival coinciding with Alexander Isak’s sour exit from St. James’ Park.
However, just because the 6-foot-6 menace has been banging the goals in, that doesn’t mean it’s been entirely rosy in the attacking quarters regarding new, high-profile signings, with Anthony Elanga already going down as a “massive overpay” according to analyst Raj Chohan.
Elanga would have been expected to set the place alight from minute one of his arrival, having been a real nuisance for Premier League defences to try and contain last season, with his blistering speed up top for Nottingham Forest, also matched by a devastating output of six goals and 12 assists from 43 total contests.
Therefore, with this “frightening” campaign under his belt – as he was once branded by the Athletic’s Laurie Whitwell – the expectation would have been that he would link up with the likes of Woltemade with confidence and swagger, with a £55m price-tag also next to his name.
Games played
17
Goals scored
0
Assists
1
Transfer fee
£55m
Wage per week
£100k-per-week
Transfer cost per appearance
£3.2m
Yet, it’s been anything but a smooth ride for the ex-Manchester United winger so far, with Elanga still stuck on zero goals and just one assist from 17 appearances on Tyneside.
When studying that £55m transfer fee further, that means Elanga has cost the Toon a hefty £3.2m per game so far, with virtually no end product to show for their rash spending.
That’s before you even consider his steep £100k-per-week salary which will cost the Magpies another £5.2m per calendar year.
Thiaw earns just £ 75k per week, on the contrary, while Woltemade at least warrants his higher £132.5k-per-week pay packet at the moment, with plenty of goals put away.
The powers that be at Newcastle will hope it’s just a slow start from Elanga, who is used to terrorising defences with his rapid pace, with Howe also hopeful that his low-on-confidence attacker picks up form soon to turn around his team’s overall lacklustre start.
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1 ByAngus Sinclair
