With Rafa out of the way. I assume all transfers will be players on the cheap or young enough to expect a sell-on. We'll also haggle every deal, making most of them fail. The resulting random squad will be handed to Steve Bruce, who will make no complaint and get on with it. Well, with Rondon, Perez, Joselu and Kenedy out, we've got most of our goals to replace. If Hayden gets the transfer he wants, we'll need a CM in. I've heard Dubravka's unsettled. That would be big trouble. And of course the rest are all for sale at the right price. Luckily, that price will often be unreasonable. So, maybe it will all hold together for that just-above-relegation finish we look forward to every year. Before I get any more cynical, here's the thread to discuss new arrivals and departures.
Well, now that Rafa's gone we'll spend more than we ever gave him to spend?!? It makes no sense, and seems risky too. He could be good, or maybe there are no goals in the team, if he doesn't adapt. Anyway, that's £40m gone. Can't be much left in this window. 📸 Check out the best images from Joelinton's first day at Newcastle United following his club record move to Tyneside...https://t.co/APHKSWxi5b #NUFC #JoelinToon pic.twitter.com/vayOmCQ79w— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) July 23, 2019
Well, with Allan Saint-Maximin we certainly have a more expensive front three than last year. They're all unproven in the PL, though. It's going to be another roller coaster season, I think. The Ashley ownership has become a dark cloud. I'll probably come round when the season starts, but it's hard to enjoy the transfer news while still mourning the loss of Rafa and ambition. We could still use another full back and a midfielder, but this is probably what we'll start 2019/20 with. Hmmm, I suppose we could lose people still. There are Clark and Gayle rumors. Even Dubravka's been mentioned, God forbid.
Now that transfer the window is closed, we can list our results: IN Joelinton Saint-Maximin Krafth Carroll Willems (Loan) OUT Rondón (End of Loan) Kenedy (End of Loan) Diamé Pérez Joselu Murphy (Loan) This is the 25-man squad Dúbravka (1), Darlow (26), Elliot (21) Dummet (3), Willems (15), Lejeune (20), Lascelles (6), Schär (5), Fernández (18), Clark (2), Manquillo (19), Yedlin (22), Krafth (17) Longstaff (36), Hayden (14), Ki (4), Shelvey (8) Almirón (24), Saint-Maximin (10), Ritchie (11), Atsu (30) Joelinton (9), Gayle (12), Muto (13), Carroll (7) That doesn't look bad on paper. Goals are the big question, since nobody knows how Joelinton will do in the Premier League. We'll need goals from Almiron and Saint-Maximin too, and neither one has a PL goal either! Could be comfortably mid-table, or it could be a complete disaster. What do you guys think?