Newcastle’s third victory in as many games has seen them escape the drop zone, but pundits have expressed fears their form may effect Rafa Benitez’s January budget.
Newcastle fans were furious at the lack of investment in the summer, sighting it as a reason for the team’s woeful start.
After a win-less run in their opening 10 games, it looked like breaking the bank in January would be their only hope for survival.
But the club have always kept their spending to a minimum under Rafa Benitez. In his past two January windows, the Spaniard has yet to make a permanent signing.
And now that their form has picked up, this may well be the case again come the New Year. If Rafa’s team continue to win games, the club is under less pressure to spend.
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Pundits give warning to Newcastle fans
Ex-Premier League stars Danny Mills and Ray Parlour both echoed similar thoughts after Newcastle’s latest win over Burnley.
While Toon fans rejoiced at Rafa’s tactical genius, the two pundits gave more pessimistic views of the manager’s success.
Parlour appeared on Sky Sport’s The Debate on Tuesday night and was quick to highlight the issue.
The Ex-Arsenal man said: “The problem now Geoff (Shreeves) is cause they’ve started winning, they won’t be signing anybody in January.
“I’m sure the Newcastle fans don’t want to hear that but…”
Mills meanwhile, spoke to Radio 5 Live on Monday, and gave a slightly more general concern over the ownership of the club.
Mills said: “The trouble for Newcastle fans is it looks like Rafael Benitez is going to do it again and will get Newcastle out of trouble.
“But that means Mike Ashley will stay. That’s the issue for them.”
Many Newcastle supporters have long called for owner Mike Ashley to sell the club, and protests against him heightened during the team’s poor run. Protest groups are currently trying to send a message to the owner by organising demonstrations and boycotts.
But with the team now doing well, there’s question marks over whether they will be successful in rallying support.
McClaren’s disastrous window has hampered Benitez
A big reason for the club’s hesitancy to spend money is due to the memory of their disastrous 2015 transfers.
With Steve McClaren at the helm and Graham Carr scouting, Newcastle looked determined to build a strong squad.
£50m was spent on Georginio Wijnaldum, Aleksandar Mitrovic, Chancel Mbemba and Florian Thauvin.
The aim had been to avoid relegation, but by the end of December it was already a possibility.
Despite McClaren’s team looking in serious danger, Ashley stuck by his manager and funded him again in January. Over £35m was spent this time, on Andros Townsend, Jonjo Shelvey and Henri Saivet.
Although both Townsend and Shelvey became fan favourites, they couldn’t completely stop the rot.
McClaren was then sacked in March and replaced by Benitez, a last ditch effort save the Toon.
But by then it was already too late and Newcastle were relegated at the end of the season.
With £85m spent and only a relegation to show for it, it’s no wonder Ashley has been cautious in recent windows.