Can you name a signing from the Mike Ashley era who would be in the top five of Newcastle United’s best additions of the past 18 years?
Fabricio Coloccini, Johan Cabaye, the late Cheikh Tiote, Demba Ba and Papis Cissé will all make convincing arguments. Lost in the Eddie Howe era at St James’ Park are Jacob Murphy and Fabian Schar, and their cases are strong too.
Howe’s most used player at Newcastle | ||
|---|---|---|
rank | player | app |
1 | Bruno Guimarães | 164 |
2 | Fabian Schaal | 160 |
3 | Dan Burns | 159 |
4 | jacob murphy | 145 |
5 | Joelinton | 139 |
Dates via Transfermarkt | ||
All the players are great, but Newcastle have risen to a higher position in the last four years. Murphy and Shar are hard-working and capable members of the Thun system, but neither is of the highest caliber.
Let’s take a look at some of the brilliant works that have appeared in recent years. People who make a difference. Trophy winners. The go-getters.
There are several players who have developed into top class players.
Howe’s best contract at Newcastle
Newcastle were weak but now they are strong. Toon, which once lost its rudder under Ashley’s tyranny, charted a new course with the takeover of PIF, and has not turned back yet.
Howe and his team have done the right thing time and time again. Take Anthony Gordon, for example. The England international faced some criticism when he first joined from Everton, but he has gone from strength to strength and has turned down interest from the likes of Liverpool, who were reluctant to be valued at £100m in 2024 when he turns 24.
Gordon is not alone and may even be overshadowed by captain Bruno Guimarães. Even in the early action, the Brazilian was a pillar of strength in the center of the park and had no trouble performing.
One of Guimarães’ best qualities is his clarity of black and white. Here is a man who, forgetting his unparalleled technical quality and steely tenacity, loved the club and was passionate about its glorious success.
There are many more players still in a Newcastle shirt, but these are probably the superstars.
We must mention Alexander Isak, who scored 27 goals last season and was arguably the best striker in the Premier League. He left in inflammatory circumstances and will never be popular on Tyneside again.
However, Newcastle paid a British record £125 million for the Swedish striker, and given his success with the team and how Howe and co put that big money back into the transfer market, it’s interesting to see one new signing in particular shaping up to be one of the best signings of the PIF era.
Newcastle star may be the best player of the PIF era
Sometimes you can just tell. And in the case of Nick Woltemade, you could see that Newcastle have acquired one of the most talented forwards in Europe.
The German striker, who was hailed by Andy Sixsmith for his “fascinating” link-up play, may not have put his name on the scoresheet when Newcastle beat Benfica this week, but his overall display has been spectacular, proving you don’t need goals to be an eye-catcher.
Of course, the goals have been great – five in eight games for his new club this season. He has only missed three big chances for the club with clinical precision, but he is willing to drop deep and weave his play together, sewing the fabric of Howe’s team like a seamstress.
This may seem like an exaggerated compliment, but the big man is a huge talent and Newcastle must feel they are getting more bang for their buck.
It tells us that…despite losing such a devastating frontman, Isaac, Howe’s attacking line-up has stabilized and looks set to provide even more joy to the fans in the final third.
Isak left for a staggering fee and Newcastle replaced him with Woltemade and Yoan Ouissa. Although he is currently sidelined with a knee injury, he is confident that he will be a top goalscorer when he leaves the club. Now United are moving forward again. Now they are showing signs of aggressive qualities, which can evolve into new ones in line with noble ambitions.
Woltemade joined from Stuttgart this summer for a record-breaking £69m, but he is proving Newcastle are getting more than their money’s worth. If Howe’s side regain full fluency and continue to make creative progress, it is unlikely that goals will dry up and Newcastle will dry up in ninth place.
The underlying data speaks volumes about his potential. Thanks to data from FBref, we can see that over the past year, Waltemaid has ranked in the top 5% of forwards in Europe’s top 5 leagues in shot creation actions, top 15% in progressive passes, and top 7% in take-on attempts per 90 points.
A successful take-on is recorded when a player, while still in possession of the ball, directly carries the ball and defeats his opponent.
Obviously he’s pretty good and will get even better as he matures and develops within the English game.
It is too early to claim with any certainty that Waltemaid is the definitive best player of the PIF era at St James’s Park.
After all, the likes of Gordon and Guimarães have played a key role in the growth of Howe’s project, guiding the club to the Champions League twice and winning the Carabao Cup last season.
We cannot categorically call Waltemade the best player in this new chapter for Newcastle, but based on the early black-and-white readings, we can confidently say that this is a special striker who is increasingly poised for success.