Inside Newcastle Q&A: Any January signings? What is happening with Sandro Tonali? – The Athletic

During the Premier League season, The Athletic’s Newcastle United subscribers can ask our writers covering the club for their views and insight into what’s happening at St James’ Park.

We have pulled together some of the questions and our answers from Monday’s (January 12) edition of our Inside Newcastle live Q&A, which included queries about potential January transfer business, Sandro Tonali’s future and board expectations for the season.

Want to ask us anything else Newcastle-related? Chris Waugh will be back later this month for another session.

Any news on the lesser-spotted Will Osula? — Anonymous U

Waugh: Osula is out with a foot injury which has been afflicting him for most of the season.

Initially, he was able to manage it while making appearances off the bench. But the pain worsened and Osula last played against West Ham on November 2. The likelihood is it will be the end of January before he is potentially able to feature again — which makes Eddie Howe’s decision to experiment with both Yoane Wissa and Nick Woltemade against Bournemouth more curious, given they are his only two fit strikers.

As to what will happen with Osula this month, that still appears to be the source of some internal debate. Ideally, Howe wants three striker options, which means either Osula must stay, or another young, versatile forward is signed during this window — and that does not appear forthcoming.

Will Osula has been struggling with a foot injury this season (Glyn Kirk/AFP/Getty Images)

During the summer, Newcastle received permanent and loan offers for Osula and, at one stage on deadline day, he was bound for Eintracht Frankfurt. That transfer collapsed and, while Frankfurt’s interest has lingered, reports in Germany claiming an agreement to resurrect any deal have been premature. Aston Villa have tracked his progress, too.

Ideally, the 22-year-old needs significant game time. He has only started one Premier League game for Newcastle and that lack of first-team action is stunting his development.

The call Newcastle must make is whether to loan him out in the hope he progresses and either becomes more of a regular under Howe or that his value increases. Alternatively, they must accept his present market value — which seems to be around the £30million-£35million mark ($40.4m-$47.1m), a figure that seems generous given his lack of experience but this is the bewildering transfer market — is at a premium and sell him now.

As things stand, it seems most likely Osula will stay on Tyneside until the end of the season, especially given his present injury, but his situation may develop later in the month.

If we successfully defend the Carabao Cup but do not make the Champions League, how would the board react? — William N

Waugh: From a board perspective, there would be frustration and disappointment financially, because the Champions League is lucrative and really aids Newcastle’s revenue streams. The loss of prestige would also have a negative effect on Newcastle’s ability to attract players and, to a degree, their capacity to land higher-value commercial deals (though the tag of multiple trophy winners would offset that to an extent).

But David Hopkinson, the CEO, speaks about Newcastle’s need to turn one trophy into multiple and, in that sense, Howe and the players would have ended a 70-year domestic silverware drought with cup successes in consecutive seasons. There is a cachet to regularly lifting cups and, while the Carabao Cup is not the most prestigious prize, claiming it twice in quick succession starts to breed the desired winning culture.

Whether PIF (Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Newcastle’s majority owners) would be as enamoured with another trophy as they would about reaching the Champions League again is difficult to assess. Though Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the chairman, did celebrate enthusiastically last March and promised it was the first of many…

If Newcastle finished sixth and retained the Carabao Cup, for example, that is still quite the achievement and I believe there are enough well-qualified and rational people within the hierarchy to recognise that.

Is there any sniff of signings this window? Not heard a lick of rumour for a while — Mike P

Waugh: It has been a very quiet January window in general, a few low-key signings and Antoine Semenyo’s big Manchester City move aside.

Those in recruitment circles are openly discussing the lack of activity across the Premier League and citing a high summer spend — Newcastle themselves invested an initial £241m — and increased caution around mid-season outlays since PSR (the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules) rules were enforced.

Even so, Newcastle are actively exploring options. Ideally, Howe does want an addition or two to freshen his squad, and particularly to bolster his depleted defence.

Toulouse’s Dayann Methalie, the versatile 19-year-old left-sided defender, is a name that has become public. He has admirers inside St James’ Park, but is currently sidelined due to a knee operation, and he is definitely not the only defender they are tracking closely. Right-sided centre-backs, following Fabian Schar’s ankle injury, and midfielders are also near the top of the wanted list.

Toulouse’s left-sided defender Dayann Methalie (right) is a player Newcastle admire (Valentine Chapuis/AFP/Getty Images)

But what many may see as a cautious approach by Newcastle’s hierarchy — some fans have gone as far as to suggest, if signings do not arrive, it will border upon the irresponsible — derives from their belief that the market is not conducive to value-for-money, long-term additions, at least as things stand. They do not want to make a short-term signing on a permanent deal and, in the process, potentially negatively affect their financial position going into the summer and beyond.

Whether loans become an option later in the window, should the defensive-injury situation not relent and a suitable-and-attainable permanent target cannot be identified, is unclear.

Newcastle’s recruitment department are scouting defenders and discussions are taking place, with more having occurred following Tino Livramento’s hamstring injury on Saturday, yet there is no guarantee anyone is acquired.

The club will not sign someone for the sake of it; they will only bring in a player they view as being in the long-term interests of Newcastle. Many fans may disagree with that stance — and a personal view is that an addition, even one who merely provides left-back cover, would give everyone associated with the club a lift — but PSR remains an ongoing concern which Ross Wilson, the sporting director, has to factor in.

What’s the view of Alex Murphy from the coaching staff because he’s only made one brief appearance off the bench? — Peter A

Waugh: Howe insisted on Monday that Murphy “will be needed” in the coming weeks and praised his training performances, while he was also very complimentary following the defender’s 14-minute appearance off the bench against Fulham last month.

Howe’s public pronouncements do not quite match his actions, though, and it seems he does not yet trust the 21-year-old to play regular first-team minutes. Lewis Miley was deemed a safer choice to play at centre-half against Leeds once Fabian Schar was forced off, the 19-year-old’s third position of the match, rather than for Murphy to be introduced.

Clearly, Howe likes Murphy because he has kept the Irishman around the group, and he has featured in 19 matchday squads this season. Yet Murphy has only made two short substitute appearances in the cup, which suggests the faith to perform in key top-level matches is not there.

Initially, Murphy was going to be sent on loan this month, having done reasonably well in League One with Bolton Wanderers last season.

Unfortunately, the defender is caught in an awkward position. He desperately needs game time to gain experience and build that trust to be awarded greater minutes, yet Howe does not feel he can allow Murphy to leave on loan due to the lack of fit senior defenders.

I do expect Murphy will get minutes over the next few weeks but, unless he excels, I do not envisage him playing much once Dan Burn and Emil Krafth return.

Any worries about losing Tonali? Quite a few below-his-standard performances coupled with persistent rumours of interest — Josh D

Waugh: I am not overly worried about losing Tonali in the short term, though I will caveat that by saying I often feel I am in a minority, even among my journalistic colleagues, on that front.

I entirely understand the concerns fans have because, at his best, Tonali has shown world-class form and he was a critical reason why Newcastle won the Carabao Cup and qualified for the Champions League last season. Top clubs have watched those performances and cast envious glances.

But while Italian clubs, and most prominently Juventus, continue to be linked, the financial outlay required to pull off any deal makes it highly unlikely they could afford it. Tonali is contracted until 2029, though Newcastle can unilaterally extend that to 2030, and would demand a fee well in excess of what the £55m they paid for him, while the midfielder’s wage requirements would also be substantial.

That pretty much rules out most clubs in Europe being able to afford him, aside from Premier League sides and the very elite. As of yet, none have signalled they would be willing to make a move for Tonali — if they did, then I really would begin to worry.

Yet another factor to consider is Tonali’s previous gambling ban. Any club signing Tonali knows he has already served 10 months for betting offences and that would have to be taken into consideration before any sizeable outlay was committed.

As for his recent form, Tonali’s performances have taken a significant dip. Off the ball, he has rediscovered some of his energy and tenacity in the past couple of games, but in possession he has remained sloppy. Given he became a father for the first time last Thursday, perhaps that significant life development has been affecting him, but in time I have no doubts the midfielder will rediscover his best levels and become influential again.

We potentially have two leaders leaving soon (Kieran Trippier and Jamaal Lascelles). Where are the leaders going to come from to replace them? Are we going to do what we did with Trippier and bring someone in? — Alan W

Waugh: It’s such an important point about leadership and one which often gets overlooked. In recent weeks, when Newcastle have had difficult moments, there have not been on-field generals like Dan Burn and Trippier trying to rally their team-mates and provide in-game guidance.

By the summer, I do expect Trippier and Lascelles to have departed, while it is not beyond the realms of possibility other senior figures have been moved on, too, or at least the likes of Burn and Nick Pope may no longer be regular starters anymore (though both will believe they can and will be).

Primarily, Newcastle hope to continue their recruitment policy of signing players under the age of 24, but some at the club feel it is important to also bring in more senior operators alongside to provide experience at key moments. The recruitment of Burn and Trippier in that first January window remains some of the best post-takeover business Newcastle have conducted.

Beyond that, Howe is keen for new leaders to emerge beyond the present ‘leadership group’ and has been empowering his squad. Sven Botman, Malick Thiaw, Lewis Hall and Miley are the kind of players who are gaining more prominent voices, although, in the interim, there may be a concern regarding a potential ‘leadership gap’.