Why Newcastle's nightmare summer might just surprise us...

Before your sides split laughing at the idea, hear me out.

If you had canvassed Newcastle fans (and asked Eddie Howe) about what success would look like before the transfer window opened, you would likely have received answers referencing the following:

• A starting right-winger and centre-back.
• Goalkeeper competition.
• Selling some squad players.
• Better quality replacements for departed squad players.
• Holding on to the best players.
• Lowering the squad average age.

The Alexander Isak situation has overshadowed everything since mid-July. The noise around that has been such that (perfectly valid) questions have been raised about the entire PIF project and Newcastle's place on the priority list. It has thrown into sharp focus the turmoil at executive and operational level that has contributed to the club's best player being unsettled to the point of what currently looks like no return.

Add this to the multiple high-profile failed bids for top transfer targets (some to theoretically replace Isak), and it has resulted in what is widely regarded as a disastrous and damaging transfer window with potential long-term ramifications.

Even for the most glass half full, happy clapper type supporters (of which I count myself a proud member), it has been difficult to try and preach patience this summer given the previous three transfer windows delivered precisely zero first-team ready players, aside from the free transfer signing of the already departed Lloyd Kelly. The apparent snail's pace of incoming transfer activity has contributed to the fear that the club will simply not be prepared for the season to come, even though it is  undeniable that there is a whole context to the transfer market that is out of Newcastle's control, and their difficulties are mirrored by the majority of the Premier League clubs that do not make up the traditional 'big six'.

Try to cut through the noise, however, and take a more objective look at the last few months, and things start to look a little less miserable.

Going back to our list of requirements for this transfer window, Anthony Elanga became the first established right-winger to sign since the takeover, and he arrived early enough to take part in most of pre-season. There had been long-standing interest in the Forest man so that ticked off a problem position nice and early.

Malick Thiaw is another player who had been on the agenda for a few years. He provides some much-needed youth and legs at centre-back and is a viable alternative to Fabian Schar, with a similar style of play and passing range. It's taken a while but getting the German in the building before the season opener is good news.

Although the endless pursuit of James Trafford was doomed to failure (at least by the time Newcastle had made an acceptable bid and allowed Man City time to weigh up a move), Aaron Ramsdale is a low-risk, potentially high-reward pick up on loan. Again, he was a player Newcastle had kept tabs on for some time. The goalkeeper department is much stronger this season.

These three signings, while not Tonali 2023 or Isak 2022 style marquee signings, should be very astute buys at Premier League level at least, and with Howe's coaching could become even more.

Additionally, Elanga (23) and Thiaw (just turned 24) lower the squad age profile, as does Ramsdale (27) who is yet to hit his prime and is nine years the junior of Martin Dubravka. This is really solid and sensible business.

Between 2021 and 2024 Newcastle sold less than £80m worth of players, and this was inflated with the reluctant PSR sales of Anderson and Minteh. 2025 started off well with the departures of Almiron and Kelly for around £30m combined, and this continued into the summer as Longstaff was sold to Leeds for a fee reaching up to £15m. Dubravka's sale also brought in a couple of million and the salaries of Jamal Lewis, Isaac Hayden and Callum Wilson were removed from the books.

Newcastle have pretty much reached their limit in terms of which squad players they can dispense with without ending up with kids on the first-team bench. Dubravka, Kelly and Almiron's positions have all now been replaced. The key now will be how successful the Magpies are in replacing Longstaff and Wilson.

It looks a good bet that Yoane Wissa will soon arrive to fill Wilson's shoes. Wissa has little resale value at almost 29, but he is a guaranteed performer at Premier League level and is coming off the back of a 19-goal season. Wissa is an instant upgrade on Wilson based on his availability (he appeared in 91% of Brentford's Premier League games over the last four seasons), as well as being five years younger. If Howe can get three productive years out of Wissa, then it will be money well spent. It is also encouraging that there is a bit of flexibility in the recruitment system to meet an immediate pressing need.

That leaves central midfield as the next priority, particularly in light of Joe Willock's latest injury setback, and there have been links to various midfielders in the last week or two. Expect this to ramp up once Thiaw and Wissa are sealed, with recent reports indicating that Newcastle might continue to shop in Italy.

If it wasn't for the circus surrounding Isak, Newcastle's summer business so far would be deemed to be sensible (if a little understated), and there would be greater patience with three weeks remaining of the window that the Wissa deal would be tied up and midfield would be the only area left to address.

Summer 2025, however, is and always will be about Alexander Isak. If a key objective for Newcastle was retaining their best players, this remains very much in the balance heading into the last weeks of the window. Without getting into the rights and wrongs of that situation, losing his star striker clearly wasn't part of Howe's plan for the off-season. A knock-on effect of Isak wanting to leave has been Newcastle trying to replace him, which in turn has led to more failed attempts to sign high-profile, potentially elite strikers. These rejections have been another theme of a summer in which the Magpies have at times completely lost control of the narrative and the optics have been far from ideal.

But if Newcastle do sell Isak it will be for an eye-watering transfer fee which will help the PSR calculations for the next few years. It will also only happen if Howe can source at least one other striker as well as Wissa. Of course, that player will not be at the individual level of Isak and he will be a huge miss, but it could present an opportunity for overall squad improvement and system development that isn't reliant on one player to score 20+ goals. The squad will also be better off for not carrying a player that doesn't want to be there.

There's no doubt it has been a difficult period for Newcastle United, but the hard work is paying off and the squad is taking shape. Despite the derailment caused by Isak, the summer is actually getting back on track. The Magpies have three weeks left to resolve the outstanding issues, wrestle back control of the narrative and build the base for another successful season.

HWTL!