PIF have made 25 permanent signings since buying the club but which one is the best?
Newcastle United’s protracted takeover saga came to a conclusion in October 2021 when PIF finally bought the club. A lot has changed since.
Eddie Howe replaced Steve Bruce shortly afterwards and he has taken the club from relegation strugglers to Champions League competitors, as well as Carabao Cup champions.
Though the spending hasn’t been quite as wild as predicted, with PSR hampering Newcastle in recent windows, PIF have still spent millions on players.
The 2025 summer window took PIF’s spending past the £700m mark in just four years.
Here are all 25 permanent first-team signings made by the owners since 2021, ranked.
- Newcastle United 2025/26 squad cost – Transfer fees and stats for every player
Newcastle United’s best signings since the Saudi Arabia takeover
Newcastle’s signings since the takeover in 2021 ranked from worst to best.
25 – Odysseas Vlachodimos – Nottingham Forest – £20m
Though it was a deal that had to be done so Nottingham Forest would sign Elliot Anderson and ensure Newcastle didn’t break PSR rules, it’s still hard to look past it as the worst signing PIF have made.
Odysseas Vlachodimos arrived for a sizeable £20m fee but the goalkeeper played just 45 minutes of football and is now on loan at Sevilla.
24 – John Ruddy – Birmingham City – Free
John Ruddy has played even fewer minutes but that’s the point of his role of being a homegrown player in the squad and helping in training. Not an exciting signing but an inoffensive one.
23 – Harrison Ashby – West Ham United – £3m
Newcastle paid a hefty £3m for young Harrison Ashby to West Ham in January 2023 for his potential but the youngster is yet to set the world alight. He played 31 games for QPR in the Championship in 2024-25.
22 – Park Seung-soo – Suwon Bluewings – Minimal fee
It looks like Newcastle might have unearthed a diamond in the form of exciting winger Park Seung-soo.
The teenage Park dazzled in his friendly appearances for the club in pre-season and is impressing at the Under-21 level. It might not be too long before he makes his competitive senior debut.
21 – Chris Wood – Burnley – £25m
Chris Wood was stolen away from Burnley in PIF’s first window at the helm, and he was targeted as his departure would significantly weaken a direct relegation rival.
Burnley went down and Newcastle stayed up, so it worked a treat.
However, given the fee paid, Wood wasn’t a great signing for the team itself and he scored just five times in 39 games before going on to shine at Nottingham Forest after being sold at a loss for £15m.
20 – Yankuba Minteh – Odense BK – £7m
Newcastle looked like they’d found an exciting gem when they signed Yankuba Minteh from Denmark in 2023, and his excellent season on loan at Feyenoord proved it.
However, Newcastle were forced to sell Minteh to remain within PSR rules and Brighton were the lucky beneficiaries. The winger had a fine debut Premier League season and scored against Newcastle twice, refusing to celebrate each time.
A silver lining is that Newcastle made a tidy profit of around £23m on him.
19 – Lloyd Kelly – Bournemouth – Free
If you go by his displays on the field, Lloyd Kelly should be even lower on the list, but his signing was a great piece of business from the club.
Signed on a free transfer in the summer of 2024, Kelly was shipped out to Juventus the following January on loan with an obligation to buy for £20m.
That looks great on the books in a PSR world.
18 – Yoane Wissa – Brentford – £55m
Newcastle splashed out a massive £55m to sign Yoane Wissa on deadline day in 2025. Desperation forced them into paying over the odds, as a replacement for Alexander Isak was urgently required.
Wissa is yet to play for the club due to injury, however, so it’s impossible to put him higher on the list.
17 – Jacob Ramsey – Aston Villa – £43m
Jacob Ramsey has also been dealing with injury issues since his big-money move from Aston Villa. However, he will hopefully be back in action soon and start climbing up the ranks.
16 – Matt Targett – Aston Villa – £15m
Initially signed on loan, Matt Targett became a permanent Newcastle player in the summer of 2022 and was a solid addition.
The left-back’s game time became limited after he was upgraded upon and injuries hit hard, so he is spending the final year of his contract on loan at Middlesbrough.
15 – William Osula – Sheffield United – £15m
The jury is still out on William Osula. The enthusiastic striker has shown potential but still has a long way to go to prove he is good enough for the side.
He has shown improvements in the early stages of the 2025-26 season and has contributed goals, but Newcastle may regret not cashing in on him for £30m on deadline day.
14 – Anthony Elanga – Nottingham Forest – £55m
Anthony Elanga was another expensive 2025 signing, coming in from Nottingham Forest for £55m.
The lightning-quick winger has shown glimpses of what he is capable of on the right flank, but is yet to find the cutting edge that made him such a lethal asset for Forest.
13 – Malick Thiaw – AC Milan – £34.4m
Malick Thiaw is looking to be yet another smart defensive addition by Howe after his few opening appearances.
The German was recruited from AC Milan and is already becoming a fan favourite while forming a solid partnership with Sven Botman.
12 – Harvey Barnes – Leicester City – £39m
Harvey Barnes tends to blow hot and cold. In his two seasons at Newcastle, he has shown the ability to go on ruthless scoring streaks where he is lethal in the attacking third.
However, he tends to be quite streaky and can go long stretches without affecting much. His time at Newcastle could still get even better, but it’s easy to see him being sold out of nowhere as well.
11 – Sven Botman – Lille – £31.8m
Sven Botman was a quality addition that instantly improved Newcastle’s backline.
However, he isn’t higher on this list as over a year of injury trouble after suffering an ACL tear has limited his game time since March 2024.
Hopefully, he can get back to his best in the 2025-26 campaign and he has made a good start.
10 – Nick Woltemade – Stuttgart – £69m
If Nick Woltemade continues on his current trajectory, he’ll be much further up this list before long.
Despite arriving with the pressure of a record £69m price tag and having to replace Isak, the German has enjoyed a great start to life in Newcastle and is already among the goals.
He looks to be a genius signing.
9 – Nick Pope – Burnley – £10m
One of Newcastle’s smartest additions was the capture of Nick Pope for a bargain fee of £10m.
While not the highest calibre of name, Pope has proven to be a dependable presence between the sticks and a solid foundation for the rest of the team to be built upon.
Newcastle tried to replace him with James Trafford in 2025 but failed. In response, Pope is enjoying his best run of form yet.
8 – Anthony Gordon – Everton – £45m
Like Barnes, Anthony Gordon can go from moments of brilliance to periods of frustration where nothing seems to work.
He has shown more consistent quality than his competitor for a left-wing spot but Gordon has also been linked with a possible move away.
That’s unlikely to happen in 2025 but he must make a significant step up in the forthcoming season to prove he is the player he looks like he can be.
7 – Lewis Hall – Chelsea – £35m
Given all the millions Chelsea spend on new players, it’s remarkable that they allowed Lewis Hall to slip through their fingers.
At just 21 years old, he is firmly one of the best left-backs in the Premier League and enjoyed an incredible campaign in 2024-25. If he continues to improve, then £35m is going to look like a bargain, but he has struggled with injuries in recent months.
6 – Tino Livramento – Southampton – £40m
On the opposite flank, Tino Livramento is also proving to be worth every penny of a massive fee to be spent on a full-back.
The U21 European Championship winner had a great season and proved his versatility when he slotted in at left-back to cover for the injured Hall.
Does any team in the Premier League have a better set of full-backs?
5 – Sandro Tonali – AC Milan – £55m
If his first season wasn’t curtailed by a gambling ban, Sandro Tonali would likely already be higher on this list.
Yet, there’s no doubt that he can climb up it if he continues to put in the elegant and robust displays he has been doing.
Accurate passing, strength in possession and an acute reading of the game, Tonali is the perfect midfielder who almost feels a class above Newcastle.
4 – Kieran Trippier – Atletico Madrid – £12m
Kieran Trippier was PIF’s first signing and the veteran has proven to be an astute acquisition.
There have been times when he’s looked off the pace and made defensive mistakes, but his experience and cunning have been invaluable to a team that wasn’t brimming with winners until he helped secure the Carabao Cup. A crucial signing in Newcastle’s development.
3 – Dan Burn – Brighton – £13m
What needs to be said? A local lad bought for a paltry £13m, who plays any role asked of him to a high standard and only goes and scores in the club’s first trophy win in decades.
Signing a player who goes on to become an eternal legend is a pretty good move.
2 – Bruno Guimaraes – Lyon – £41.65m
Bruno Guimaraes has come to epitomise Newcastle’s growth since the takeover after arriving in that first transfer window.
The Brazilian was the club’s first statement signing, but he wasn’t the glamour name many predicted. Instead, he embodies the working spirit of Newcastle by putting in battling, all-action displays in every performance.
Guimaraes’ passion bleeds through to supporters and it’s no surprise he is now club captain.
1 – Alexander Isak – Real Sociedad – £63m
Sometimes the simplest answers are correct and Alexander Isak is obviously PIF’s best signing so far, even if things ended poorly.
The Swedish striker is genuinely world-class and was sensational in 2024-25, attracting the interest of Liverpool.
Though Isak has burned bridges with Newcastle fans with his conduct as he forced through the move, the fact Newcastle managed to nearly double their money on a player they spent £63m on is remarkable.
Isak helped Newcastle end their trophy drought and they sold him for £125m. As bitter as the feelings may be, he is still PIF’s best transfer business to date.
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