Newcastle now ‘shaping up’ to make big transfer change at St James’ Park

Newcastle United are ready to change up their transfer approach moving forward and will begin to scout heavily in both Germany and France ahead of January after Eddie Howe comments on Premier League pricing, according to transfer insider Dean Jones.

Howe oversaw a steady stream of business at St James’ Park in the summer window but plans are already being put in place for future exploits.

Having been bought by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund in October 2021, a lot was expected of the world’s richest club in their first summer window.

January saw £90 million splashed on four permanent recruits with Kieran Trippier, Dan Burn, Chris Wood and Bruno Guimaraes all putting pen to paper in the North East.

While more money was spent in the most recent window, only four new faces arrived in the form of Nick Pope, Matt Targett, Sven Botman and a club-record deal for Real Sociedad striker Alexander Isak.

The Sweden international was signed for £63 million and made an instant impact when he scored on his debut against Liverpool last week.

Nick Pope, too, has endeared himself to his new fans, keeping three clean sheets in his first six Premier League games for the Magpies.

But they did not sign everyone they wanted. Leicester City rejected multiple approaches from the club for James Maddison, with the last bid understood to be £50 million, and Howe has now bemoaned their top-flight rivals inflating their valuations since Newcastle’s takeover.

After the summer, Jones understands that Newcastle may now be shifting their focus in the transfer market away from Premier League targets.

The transfer insider says that Newcastle will look to exploit the German and French markets in particular during future windows.

Jones told