Inside Newcastle Q&A: Kelly a target, Tonali starring in training, Gibbs-White admired

Once a week for an hour, The Athletic’s Newcastle United subscribers have the opportunity to ask me for my views and insight into what’s happening at the club.

I have pulled together some of the questions and my answers from the fourth edition of our now weekly Inside Newcastle live Q&A.

Want to ask me a question? I’ll be back on Monday at 2pm BST for another session…

Dan C asked: Do you think Newcastle will sign a proper left-back? I feel like Lewis Hall is still too young and Dan Burn is a centre-back

Chris Waugh: An out-and-out left-back? I suspect not. A defender who can potentially play there as well? That’s a possibility.

Lloyd Kelly, the Bournemouth defender who Eddie Howe signed, is set to be available on a free transfer and Newcastle are interested. Given the financial constraints of the Premier League’s profitability and sustainability rules (PSR), Howe has admitted that free agents are attractive propositions and Kelly has the flexibility to play as a centre-half and left-back.

The noises at this stage do not make left-back a ‘big priority’ — especially when at least one forward and centre-half is required, while a goalkeeper is being sought — and that is because Newcastle have several options there. Howe does not share your perspective on Burn as a left-back and the Geordie was part of the joint-meanest defence in the Premier League playing there last season, while Hall is developing and getting increased game time, with a full pre-season under the coaching staff expected to benefit the 19-year-old.

Tino Livramento and Kieran Trippier can play down that flank, while Jacob Murphy has been deployed as a right wing-back and even as a right-back at times, plus Emil Krafth is expected to stay. So, even if Burn does play at centre-half more next season given Jamaal Lascelles and Sven Botman’s anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries, Newcastle do have alternatives at left-back.

Get the latest transfer news on The Athletic…

Tony C: With Sandro Tonali and Joe Willock returning next season, what do you expect to happen to Lewis Miley?

Waugh: It will partly depend on whether there are any exits. Howe is determined to keep hold of Bruno Guimaraes but, as reported, that is set to be a summer-long saga. Sean Longstaff’s future is one to keep an eye on, too, given he is entering the final year of his deal.

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Should all remain on Tyneside, though, then the need to sign a midfielder will be lessened. They may look to recruit another player for the engine room, but the focus is expected to be elsewhere.

Miley has just turned 18 and, ideally, he would not have started 19 games this season, all in a fairly condensed period. Long-term, hopefully he will be benefit from that but Howe has suggested that his back injury has partly been caused by the increased load on his body.

Teenager Miley has played more than Howe would have planned for this season (Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Next season, he will be used more sparingly, if possible, and it is likely he will play a lot of the early European matches, should Newcastle secure qualification. There is an outside chance he goes on loan but Newcastle seem to feel that the most beneficial thing for the midfielder is to stay with the squad, continue to learn and get regular minutes once more, given the demands that will be placed upon the squad.

Caoimhin D: Is there a possibility Elliot Anderson could be sold for PSR reasons, albeit very disappointing to lose him? Should Guimaraes depart, can we expect Morgan Gibbs-White as his replacement?

Waugh: There is no desire to sell Anderson, especially not from Howe, who believes the 21-year-old has exciting potential. The frustration for the midfielder and Howe is that, because of injury, what should have been his breakthrough campaign has been too stop-start.

Regardless, Newcastle are going to have to make tough PSR decisions and nothing is out of the equation. Anderson’s name, like just about every other player in the squad, has featured at some stage in hypothetical discussions about the benefits and drawbacks of a sale. With Anderson, given he is an academy product, there is a “pure profit” benefit of selling him, but as things stand it would be a surprise if he was offloaded.

When it comes to Gibbs-White, I’m not sure he would be a like-for-like replacement for Guimaraes, although whether Newcastle would look for a direct alternative, or aim to shift Tonali deeper to compensate for losing the Brazilian, is unclear. Newcastle’s interest in Gibbs-White is not dependent on whether Guimaraes leaves, they like the Nottingham Forest midfielder.

Brinton V: Any news as to how Tonali is adapting during training?

Waugh: For a few months now, insiders have waxed lyrical about Tonali’s training-ground exploits. The main frustration is that, especially at the height of their midfield injury crisis, Newcastle had a top-class performer who they could not select.

Tonali has been working on his speed and that has shown during sessions, while his understanding of the requirements of the Premier League, and the specifics of what Howe demands, has grown.

Tonali is said to be impressing in training (Serena Taylor/Newcastle United via Getty Images)

There is genuine excitement inside the club for his return because Newcastle believe they have a truly outstanding operator and that, as difficult as this 10-month ban period has been for everyone, perversely it could yet ensure Tonali is a real success long-term.

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Oliver L: With Dan Ashworth on gardening leave, who is in charge of the summer recruitment plan?

Waugh: There is no specific person in charge of recruitment as things stand and, even if a sporting director arrives imminently, they will come in and work to the blueprint in place.

Essentially, and this is a basic way of explaining a more complicated situation, Newcastle have reverted to their processes from the 2022 January and summer windows, before Ashworth was in situ.

Steve Nickson, the head of recruitment, is working in tandem with Andy Howe, his assistant, on sourcing players and speaking with agents. Eddie Howe has the final say on targets. Then, as part of an unofficial transfer committee, Amanda Staveley, Mehrdad Ghodoussi and Jamie Reuben, the co-owners, and Darren Eales, the CEO, look to conclude deals.

Figures at Newcastle insist, publicly and privately, that their processes have been largely unaffected by Ashworth’s exit and are adamant they are prepared for what will be a complicated summer.

However, not having a sporting director in place is far from ideal. Newcastle’s search for Ashworth’s successor is reaching its final stages, though. Crystal Palace’s Dougie Freedman and Johannes Spors, 777 Partners Football Group’s global sporting director, are among a shortlist of candidates now being considered for the role.

Eric F: With Arne Slot leaving Feyenoord does that change the thought on Yankuba Minteh’s loan next season?

Waugh: Newcastle are seeking answers as Minteh was a favourite of Slot’s and the head coach was key in wanting to keep him. However, Slot works alongside Feyenoord’s transfer department and Newcastle’s relationship with other figures at the Dutch club is strong. The expectation is that Feyenoord would like to take Minteh on loan again.

Alencer F: Is there any possibility Newcastle will sign Aaron Ramsdale?

Waugh: Ramsdale is liked by Newcastle. Howe had him at Bournemouth and admires Ramsdale’s mentality, as well as his style of goalkeeping.

Should Ramsdale leave Arsenal as expected, then Newcastle will look at the 25-year-old, but the problem will be cost. Not only when it comes to Ramsdale’s fee, but his wages, which, if they remain unaltered, would not fit into Newcastle’s structure.

Given Nick Pope is the established No 1, it would be a bold move to bring in Ramsdale to compete with him when they have transfer needs elsewhere.

Haydn W: Is Howe and/or Newcastle reluctant to explore European markets for transfer incomings? It wouldn’t make sense given the club’s PSR issues.

Waugh: The perception that Howe has a preference for British players is something which irks figures who know him well. At Bournemouth, for example, the argument is that they could not easily attract players from Europe and therefore it was more sensible to recruit domestically.

At Newcastle, Howe has mixed up his recruitment. There have been Premier League-experienced signings like Burn, Pope and Anthony Gordon, but some of the best and most expensive recruits have come from abroad, including Botman, Guimaraes and Alexander Isak. The biggest signing of each of the two summer windows have been from abroad in Isak and Tonali.

Isak was an expensive import but is proving great business (George Wood/Getty Images)

Howe does value Premier League experience. It offers greater surety that a signing will perform immediately. What’s more, Newcastle are not unique in signing players from other English clubs. Look at much of Arsenal and Manchester City’s business over the past few seasons; they have made big-money signings from other top-flight sides.

I suspect the present model of mixing and matching will continue.

Chris L: Has anyone seen Matt Targett? Gone from first-choice left-back to missing in action after his hammy injury playing in the midfield…

Waugh: That 90-second cameo as a No 6 may never be replicated, but it was an interesting experiment, until Targett succumbed to his unfortunate injury on November 1 at Old Trafford. An operation on his torn hamstring followed and, after a four-month lay-off, Targett briefly returned to the matchday squad away to Chelsea on March 11, though Howe admitted he would only have been used in an emergency.

Unfortunately, Targett has subsequently been affected by Achilles tendon issues. He has been advised to rest and will not play during the final three matches.

For Targett, it has been a frustrating campaign, while the 28-year-old’s lack of football is a concern for Newcastle. If they do decide that Targett is a player they would consider offloading for PSR reasons, his value has undoubtedly suffered.

Nicholas G: What is the likely summer pre-season schedule?

Waugh: The minutiae of their plans are being sorted but, after considering the USA, Japan looks to be the destination for their main tour, with fixtures against Urawa Reds and Yokohama F Marinos pencilled in for the end of July and start of August.

Before that, however, the expectation is that Howe will take his squad to Europe for a behind-closed-doors training camp. Newcastle intend to host the Sela Cup on the weekend of August 10 and 11, the week immediately before the season begins.

(Michael Regan/Getty Images)