Report: Newcastle spent double what they initially had intended to in January

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When the January transfer window opened, Newcastle United were expected to spend a lot of money.

It was the new owners’ first chance to splash the cash, and my word did they need to.

When January 1st rolled around, the Magpies had won just one Premier League game and sat 19th in the table.

The need for reinforcements was massive, with no real new manager bounce from Eddie Howe. A combination of tough fixtures, criminal mistakes and poor performances saw the new Toon boss pick up six points from his opening eight games.

It was very clear that his squad needed a lot of improvements by the end of the transfer window.

Newcastle spend nearly £100million on new players

By 11pm last night, we had signed five new players – Kieran Trippier, Chris Wood, Bruno Guimaraes, Matt Targett and Dan Burn.

They all look like sensible signings, with varying costs. Trippier was a bargain at £12million, whereas Wood’s £25million buyout clause was somewhat steep. Guimaraes was the biggest arrival but could be the best for a potential £42million, while Burn for £13million is probably par for the course. As for Targett, he arrives on loan.

In total, it appears Newcastle have spent £92million in January. It would’ve been more if the deadline day move for Hugo Ekitike hadn’t collapsed. If that deal had gone through, we’d have surpassed the £100million mark.

Newcastle spent more than planned

While Newcastle could’ve spent more than the £92million they did spend, even that was more than was initially intended.

According to the Athletic, the new owners had initially only planned to spend around half that amount. The initial budget was between £40million and £50million.

That was when the takeover first went through in October, and our position wasn’t quite as perilous.

But things worsened heading into Christmas, and it was clear that serious investment was needed.

The big outlay is Guimaraes, but he will be with us for years to come as we hopefully climb the Premier League table.

Newcastle spent more than they wanted to, but on the whole they’ve spent well.