Newcastle United complete first summer signing — and loan to Champions League rivals

NEWCASTLE: Sporting director Dan Ashworth has revealed that Newcastle United’s first confirmed summer signing forms part of a wider transfer strategy aimed at making the Magpies a long-term force. Newcastle completed a near $7.5 million deal for Gambian forward Yankuba Minteh from Danish side Odense Boldklug on Monday, the first move they’ve made in the market since their top-four Premier League finish. And while the temptation would usually have been to throw the 18-year-old straight in the first-team mix, Newcastle have sent the player automatically out on loan to Feyenoord for the whole of the 2023/24 season.

The Dutch outfit, who won the Eredivisie last season ahead of the likes of Ajax and PSV Eindhoven, will also be in next season’s Champions League. Newcastle are expected to be in pot four, with Feyenoord top seeds. It’s a bold move by Newcastle, who are not expected to have an extravagant summer due to being at the limits of their Premier League Financial Fair Play spending limits.

However, they will attempt to stretch their budgets as far as possible, in a bid to emulate the approach made by Brighton & Hove Albion, who scour for youthful value across the globe, who used to be masterminded by Ashworth. Ashworth, said: “We are very pleased to be bringing a player with Yankuba’s high potential to Newcastle United. “He has done extremely well in his first full season in Denmark, and he has a promising career ahead of him.