Why Newcastle United have to break their transfer record this month

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Newcastle United are facing a huge final week of the transfer window as they attempt to bring in the players required to ensure they remain in the Premier League. A third relegation under Mike Ashley’s ownership would be a disaster and it seems that the board are now realising this as they have been kicked into action.

At the beginning of the month, business was slow and it seemed that the Magpies were going to let another opportunity to strengthen pass them by. Rafa Benitez still didn’t know his budget on January 12^th, but the lack of proactivity shouldn’t come as a surprise as it has been endemic to the football club in recent seasons.

The breakdown of the takeover came as a disappointment to supporters, but it could lead to the current owner investing in the club. The Mirror reported a few days ago that Mike Ashley was willing to spend what it takes to give Newcastle the best chance of staying in the Premier League.

A large section of the support scoffed at the report, as it was seen as nothing more than a PR exercise from the club to lead fans on. However, this would be counter-productive as supporters would soon see no signings materialise and direct even more anger towards the owner.

It is one thing having the intention of doing deals and another thing to stick to your word. The next seven days will be crucial for the club as they attempt to source and bring in the players required, with a striker being top of their agenda.

The Chronicle report that the Magpies are locked in talks to sign Feyenoord forward Nicolai Jorgensen. The 27-year-old is highly-rated by Benitez and the club may have to pay up to £20 million to secure his services.

This would be a watershed moment for Mike Ashley as a club-record fee would be required to convince Feyenoord to sell the Danish international – a record that has stood for 13 years and precedes the Sports Direct tycoon’s ownership.

He has been reluctant to spend big money and maintain the rate of inflation that has become ludicrous in football. However, the longer he has remained at the helm, the more inevitable it has become that he will have to break that record.

Although it is encouraging that Newcastle are willing to break their transfer record this month, as alluded to in the Chronicle’s report, it feels like an empty gesture from the owner considering the money now in the game.

Their previous record fee saw them sign Michael Owen from Real Madrid. At the time, the England icon was one of the best players that the nation had to offer and it was a signing that showed impressive ambition. His career on Tyneside was a disappointment, but that shouldn’t take away from the enormous nature of the transfer.

However, an eight-figure transfer fee in the modern market doesn’t buy a world-class player. In fact, it doesn’t even guarantee that the player will improve your team.

Middlesbrough paid £15 million for Britt Assombalonga last summer in the Championship, which underlines the inflation of transfer fees since Newcastle set their current record. Back then, spending that sort of money showed ambition. Now, it is merely maintaining the pace.

Despite being reluctant to spend huge sums of money at Newcastle, Mike Ashley did manage to achieve relative success in the transfer market during his early tenure at the club. Graham Carr regularly managed to source talented players for low fees, which allowed the club to carry out a very good business model.

Yohan Cabaye was signed for £4.3 million, before being sold on to PSG for £19 million. Meanwhile, Moussa Sissoko joined for a bargain fee and left years later to sign for Tottenham in a £30 million deal.

The owner probably expected that a similar strategy could be utilised when the team were promoted back to the Premier League in 2017. However, he has quickly learned that isn’t the case, as summer signings Joselu, Javier Manquillo and Florian Lejeune have all struggled to shine at St James’ Park.

The caveat to more money being needed to sign quality is that if recruitment is done right, these same players can be sold on for an even larger profit. Southampton are a great example of a club evolving with the times as they have been prepared to spend more on their targets with a view to selling them on for huge fees down the line.

Benitez will have realised the short-sightedness of Mike Ashley since becoming manager of Newcastle as he has regularly been left short in the transfer market. The Spaniard needs to talk in a language that the owner does understand and that is money.

Not only could Jorgensen score the goals to secure the club’s safety, a prolific 18-months in the Premier League would see his value skyrocket. If he is worth £20 million on the back of successful spells in Denmark and Holland, he would be worth even more if he was to do well in England.

The next seven days will tell us a lot about the future of Newcastle United. Mike Ashley needs to give Benitez the tools to do his job and show that he can be trusted to stabilise the club as a Premier League team until a takeover takes place. Breaking the 13-year transfer record would be a good start.