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Turning Newcastle United into European football contenders is not worth the money it will cost in Mike Ashley’s eyes, football finance expert Kieran Maguire explained in an exclusive interview with The Transfer Tavern.

While Newcastle are miles behind the likes of Manchester City and Liverpool, making a challenge for Champions League football very unlikely, there is understandably a feeling that the club at least have the potential to fight for a Europa League spot.

With a capacity of 52,000, Newcastle have one of the largest stadiums in the country and are an English outfit with a rich history.

Ashley, however, will not try to unlock that potential on the basis that qualifying for the Europa League or Europa Conference League is not worth the money that will have to be put in to get there. That is what Maguire believes is in the back of the Newcastle owner’s mind.

“In order for Newcastle to push on and to be challenging for the top half of the table, for Europa League and Europa Conference League places, he would have to spend significantly more money,” The Price of Football author told TT.

“I suspect he will take the view that the rewards of getting into Europe’s minor competitions simply aren’t worth it because we’ve got Leicester, Everton, Arsenal, Spurs, possibly Wolves and West Ham.

“To get ahead of those involves spending an awful lot of money and that’s not Mike Ashley’s track record.”

Indeed, there is a lot of competition now to get into Europe. So if Newcastle want to join the party, then they have to improve their squad every summer, which you just cannot see happening under this current regime.

Nottingham Forest face a crisis after Lewis Grabban was forced off through injury in yesterday’s 1-0 win over Peterborough United.

Promotion chasing Forest have been without Grabban for the majority of the year, after he suffered an ankle injury at the end of January. He has only recently returned so to see him out injured again is a huge setback for Steve Cooper’s side.

With their victory the club have taken a big stride towards securing a top six finish, they currently sit fourth in the Championship on 73 points. Since Cooper took over as boss at The City Ground, Forest have been in exceptional form and sit second only to already promoted Fulham.

Grabban came on as a substitute yesterday for the goal scorer Sam Surridge but then had to come off in the 89th minute.

The 34-year old has contributed massively this season making 32 appearances and being directly involved in 16 goals. If they are to be without him for the rest of the season then it could seriously affect their hopes of being promoted to the Premier League.

When Cooper was asked about the injury he told Nottinghamshire Live: “He was clear straight away that he needed to come off. We’ve got our fingers crossed for him.”

His contract expires this summer and whether or not he stays might be dependent on Forest’s promotion chase. He has experience of playing in the Premier League for both Norwich City and Bournemouth, however, he’s always failed to replicate the form he’s shown at Championship level and at his age now it may be asking too much.

Not keeping him on will also allow the club to save on their wage bill with the former Jamaican international on a wage of £25k-per-week.

The injury adds to the list of dilemmas that Cooper faces, with on-loan Aston Villa star Keenan Davis also out meaning Surridge is the only recognised senior striker at the club who’s fit.

The Reds haven’t been in the top flight since the turn of the century and many would like to see them make a return due to the history and stature of the club.

IN other news: Nottingham Forest set for disaster on Djed Spence…

Speaking to talkSPORT, dropping his verdict on the heavy links with Ajax boss Erik Ten Hag, pundit Jason Cundy has claimed he could be the ‘ambitious’ appointment Tottenham Hotspur need – with the 51-year-old coaching a style of football that Lilywhites fans ‘want to see’.

Ten Hag has moved up the Spurs managerial shortlist after it was confirmed that exciting young coach Julian Nagelsmann has taken the job at Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich (official).

Cundy reacts as Spurs eye Ten Hag

Indeed, the 33-year-old was reportedly top choice for Tottenham, but chairman Daniel Levy and co will now need to look elsewhere for a boss who can elevate them to the desired level.

Eredivisie coach Ten Hag is currently being linked, and Cundy believes he could be a good candidate for the role at Spurs.

“I think Spurs need to move forward and be a bit ambitious about their new boss.” explained the former Lilywhites defender to talkSPORT.

When asked who could come as that ‘ambitious’ appointment, Cundy explained:

“Ten Haag’s been linked, the style of play at Ajax is befitting of what Spurs fans want to see.”

Transfer Tavern take

The Dutchman has been likened to Pep Guardiola, even once working at Bayern Munich with the Manchester City boss.

Indeed, Ten Hag was the Bayern II reserve coach while Guardiola took charge of the first team – and he was apparently given that role due to his glowing reputation with young players.

Spurs correspondent Alasdair Gold has backed the claim that he is proficient with nurturing future stars, with Ten Hag also encouraging a similar attack-minded style of play to Guardiola.

Given these aspects of Ten Hag’s managerial style, he could come as a really sound alternative to Nagelsmann.

In other news: Tottenham working to sign this colossus, find out more here.

Newcastle United may not be able to permanently offload Yoshinori Muto to his Greek Super League suitor Aris Thessaloniki, according to The Athletic’s Chris Waugh. 

The lowdown

Greek outlet Sportime reported on Sunday that Aris, who finished third last season, were in ‘advanced contacts’ with the player.

Newcastle paid £9.5million to sign Muto from Bundesliga outfit Mainz in 2018, committing him to a four-year contract.

He’s now into the final 12 months of the deal, having scored only five goals since for Newcastle and SD Eibar, where he spent 2020/21 on loan (via Transfermarkt).

Newcastle have trimmed four players from their squad so far this summer. Andy Carroll and Henri Saivet were released, Cristian Atsu sealed a move to Al-Raed and Florian Lejune joined Alaves for an undisclosed fee.

The latest

Waugh reports that ‘NUFC are hopeful’ of arranging the forward’s exit this summer after Aris expressed ‘concrete interest’.

Newcastle ‘ideally’ want to sell Muto, but Aris’ preference is a loan move, which would see his wages split.

They’re willing to cover around 40% of his roughly £50,000-per-week salary, leaving the Magpies to make up the rest themselves. There’s ‘optimism’ on their side that a deal can be reached.

Muto returned to training on Monday, but that doesn’t herald a change of heart from the club. He has ‘no future’ at St James’ Park.

The verdict

It would be somewhat frustrating if Newcastle had to agree to a compromise here. While selling Muto probably wouldn’t have generated a big transfer fee given his contract situation and lean goal return, it would at least have cleared his substantial wages off the books.

Interest in Muto may not be plentiful, and so the Magpies may have to accept Aris’ proposal. If they were hoping to raise funds for incomings through sales, it seems they’re yet to make significant inroads.

In other news, could this midfielder arrive in addition to Willock?

Martin Braithwaite is a player that keeps getting mentioned with a move to West Ham, according to Football.london writer Sam Inkersole. 

Braithwaite was a bit of a shock signing for Barcelona when he completed a £16m move from Leganes in February 2020. Barca got permission from La Liga to make an emergency signing outside of the transfer window due to long-term injuries to both Luis Suarez and Ousmane Dembele [talkSPORT].

Braithwaite has had a previous spell in England when he played for Middlesbrough and a return to this country could be on the cards, as SPORT reported at the end of July that the Denmark international was in advanced talks with West Ham United over a €15m (£13m) move to the London Stadium.

The links won’t come as any surprise to West Ham fans nor Inkersole, who told Transfer Tavern: “Braithwaite I think is a player that has been mentioned for the last couple to three years. He was certainly linked with West Ham before he made that bonkers move to Barcelona.”

Braithwaite featured ten of Barca’s matches last season.

Newcastle must look to land Crystal Palace star Wilfried Zaha this summer amid Marcus Bent’s transfer claim.

What’s the story?

The Ivory Coast international has long been linked with a move away from Selhurst Park, with reports last summer suggesting that Steve Bruce’s side were very much one of the clubs interested in signing him.

Now, speaking to FFC’s sister site, This is Futbol, Bent has touted the Magpies as a potential destination for Zaha were he to finally leave the Eagles this summer.

He said: “Zaha has not been that consistent this year, but we know he’s a talent. We spoke about him going to Everton, two years ago Everton would have snapped at the chance, but I don’t think he’s a player they want.

“Newcastle would be a great team to go to. He needs a bigger pedestal to play on and better players around him.”

Imagine him and Saint-Maximin

Already boasting one of the Premier League’s elite dribblers in Allan Saint-Maximin, Bruce could help form a terrifying Newcastle duo by landing Zaha this summer and unleashing him with the Frenchman as a wing duo.

Zaha’s average of 4.5 dribbles per game in the Premier League last season was only bettered by two players: Wolves’ Adama Traore, and Saint-Maximin himself. Their abilities to play across the front-line could see them interchange positions, and make for the kind of modern forward-line used by the likes of Liverpool and Barcelona of yesteryear.

In fact, Zaha’s Palace teammate James McArthur waxed lyrical about his abilities back in 2018, saying: “He is just unplayable at times and I wouldn’t like to be a defender playing against him. For us, he is a great asset when you can give someone the ball and he can run 40 yards with it.”

Essentially, Zaha would bring a lot of the same characteristics that Saint-Maximin has in his locker.

The £40.5m-rated star would ensure that Newcastle had an added threat to go along with Saint-Maximin, and that if teams do try and double up on the Frenchman, then Zaha would have more space himself to wreak havoc.

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It would cause opposition defences all sorts of dilemmas about how best to deal with the two of them on song together, and why it could be a scary prospect for the Premier League.

Meanwhile, Newcastle are eyeing this former Premier League starlet…

As per The Sunderland Echo, the Black Cats are interested in signing Ethan Galbraith on loan this summer.

The Lowdown: Sunderland need midfield reinforcements

Sunderland missed out on promotion to the Championship last term via the play-offs, and will be hoping next year is finally their time to shine.

However, during the off-season Grant Leadbitter, Josh Scowen and Max Power all left the club, meaning they are in desperate need of midfield reinforcements.

The Latest: Galbraith on Johnson’s radar

Now, it is being reported Lee Johnson and co are interested in signing Galbraith from Manchester United.

The Red Devils are reportedly prepared to let the 20-year-old leave on a temporary basis, but Sunderland will face competition from a number of Championship clubs, as well as their League One promotion rivals.

The Verdict: Interesting talent

Clubs at Sunderland’s level must take advantage of the loan market, and Galbraith could be an interesting addition to the north-east outfit’s squad should they be able to capture his services.

Valued at £810,000 (Transfermarkt), he has extensive experience for United at youth level, and even has two caps for Northern Ireland.

Former Northern Ireland U21 boss – and now manager of the senior side – Ian Baraclough showered Galbraith in praise in 2019 by comparing him to legendary Spanish duo Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta (manutd.com).

Of course, he is some way off that level, but he is clearly an exciting talent who could prove influential for Sunderland.

In other news, Sunderland have a bid rejected for this in-demand defender.

The Athletic journalist Greg O’Keeffe doesn’t think that either Rafael Benitez or the Everton board will be keen on signing Donny van de Beek. 

The lowdown

The Manchester United midfielder’s agent said in September that he had tried to find a new club for his client and that his search had ‘ended up at Everton’. He claimed that talks were held over a possible transfer, only for United to intervene and block any deal.

Van de Beek has been on the periphery at Old Trafford this season, playing just five minutes across the Red Devils’ first seven Premier League fixtures, and the Dutchman’s estimated transfer value has fallen to £22.5m as a result, having been just shy of £50m less than two years ago.

The latest

In a mailbag for The Athletic, O’Keeffe said that his ‘understanding of the situation’ is that Everton sporting director Marcel Brands was ‘made aware’ of Van de Beek’s availability late in the transfer window and ‘may have inquired’ about a possible move.

However, he doesn’t think the 24-year-old ‘is a player who fits into Benitez’s plans’ and explained that Brands’ role is seemingly to ‘source and present options’ to the board and the manager.

O’Keeffe suspects that they would have declined if Van de Beek was on the table, saying that ‘there’s a feeling he wouldn’t fit into the system’ given that two of Everton’s existing attacking midfield options, Richarlison and Demarai Gray, are ‘quicker and more dynamic’.

The verdict

Van de Beek demonstrated his class at Ajax, starring in their run to the Champions League semi-finals in 2019, but concerns about whether Everton would be a good fit for him are not misplaced.

Realistically, Richarlison, Gray and Dominic Calvert-Lewin are all part of the Blues’ strongest XI, and in a 4-4-1-1 formation, that doesn’t really leave any room for Van de Beek.

Why would he move elsewhere in the Premier League when he could just be adopting a rotational role there which wouldn’t be much different from his current place on the Old Trafford periphery?

In other news, this announcement from the club had lots of Everton fans buzzing

The Birmingham Mail’s Ashley Preece has confirmed that Aston Villa star Leon Bailey will be missing from today’s Premier League game against Wolves.

What’s the story?

Writing on Twitter on Friday morning, he said: “Leon Bailey RULED OUT of tomorrow’s match vs Wolves, with #avfc hopeful he’ll return vs Arsenal next week (October 22). Morgan Sanson back in full training, while Bertrand Traore has thigh issue. Plus, latest on Martinez and Douglas Luiz.”

Speaking in his pre-match press conference ahead of the game today, Smith himself said: “Leon Bailey’s hasn’t ticked all the right boxes for the medical staff yet. We’re hopeful he’ll be ready for the Arsenal game. Sanson and Davis are back in full training now.”

Fans will be gutted

Ever since that electric cameo against Everton in which he came on, scored one goal and essentially made another, Villa fans will have been desperately hoping that Bailey’s quadricep injury was nothing too serious.

In the subsequent two games that he has missed in the Premier League, it has been a mixed bag for Villa, with a superb performance away at Old Trafford against Manchester United followed up by a rather tame defeat against Spurs just before the international break.

Bailey’s combination of pace, trickery and eye for goal gives Smith’s side a potent attacking force from out wide and removes much of the goal-scoring burden from the likes of Ollie Watkins and Danny Ings, who are continuing to try and forge a strike partnership between them.

The excitement levels that Bailey brings to the table are sure to be missed today against Wolves, and Villa fans will no doubt be gutted that he isn’t quite ready to make his comeback just yet.

Meanwhile, Villa could have their own Raheem Sterling in this academy sensation…

Graham Roberts has urged Harry Winks to leave Tottenham Hotspur and seek a move to Aston Villa.

The 25-year-old started just nine Premier League fixtures last season as he fell out of favour under previous Spurs boss Jose Mourinho.

Despite only being used sporadically by the Portuguese, who has gone on to take charge of Italian side Roma, Winks was not given the green light to leave Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the January transfer window.

Winks has three years remaining on his £50,000-per-week contract and it seems as though Spurs see it as the ideal time to cash in on the central midfielder.

Aston Villa have been linked with making a move for Winks, who boasts 10 England caps but missed out on Gareth Southgate’s Euro 2020 squad due to a lack of action.

Villa boss Dean Smith has already been busy in the transfer market, bringing in Emiliano Buendia for a club-record fee and welcoming Ashley Young back to the club.

Former Spurs man Roberts believes Villa Park would be an ideal destination for Winks.

Speaking exclusively to The Transfer Tavern, he said: “Aston Villa would be a good move for Harry. I think he needs a new challenge.

“Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg is a better player than Harry Winks. Harry needs to prove to himself that he can do it week in, week out.”