Newcastle United's 5-year net spend compared to top flight rivals after disappointing summer transfer window

This summer has been one to forget for Newcastle fans so far as the club has been rejected by targets left, right and centre and star striker Alexander Isak seeks a way out of the club.

Away from St James’ Park, plenty of Premier League sides, especially Newcastle’s rivals at the top end of the table, have been spending wild amounts of money to reinforce their squads for the start of the season. With more European matches to contend with, managers want bigger squads to avoid their key players burning out.

However, at the other end of the table, many clubs are finding themselves struggling to contend with the league’s Profit and Sustainability Rules holding them back. Here is how Newcastle’s net spend over the last five years compares with their Premier League rivals, with data from TransferMarkt.

Arsenal (-£614.44m)

Mikel Arteta has had a lot of money at his disposal since he took over as Arsenal boss and has spent an eyewatering amount of money in the hunt for that first Premier League title for over two decades now. This summer the club have spent big on Martin Zubimendi, Noni Madueke and the long-awaited signing of a striker in Victor Gyokeres.

Aston Villa (-£84.69m)

Aston Villa have had a lot of success in the league since Unai Emery took over and have achieved European football for three years in a row, just missing out on the Champions League on the final day of last season.

Bournemouth (-£165.24m)

The Cherries have spent a lot of money and have consolidated themselves as a Premier League club under Andoni Iraola’s stewardship.

Brentford (-£111.69m)

Brentford are another solid Premier League side but will go into the new season with the most uncertainty around them for a while after Thomas Frank left for Tottenham Hotspur and star forward Bryan Mbuemo joined Manchester United. Another key player, Yoane Wissa is also heavily linked with Newcastle.

Brighton (-£18.90m)

The Seagulls are a well-run club and always attract heavy fees for their biggest talents. They make sure they sell for a high enough amount that they can reinvest and go again in a sustainable way. That explains why their net spend over the last half-decade is a lot less than others around them.

Burnley (-£58.06m)

The newly promoted side will be hoping to survive after bouncing back down to the Championship in their last appearance in the Premier League. Burnley have never been known as being high spenders when they’ve been in the top-flight.

Chelsea (-£763.18m)

The league’s highest spenders in recent years lead the way on net spend with a ‘buy all the young talent possible’ policy beginning to work out for the American owners, as seen with their Club World Cup win over the summer.

Crystal Palace (-£162.90m)

The FA Cup winners have bought and sold well recently and are hoping to compete in the Europa League next season if their appeal against their demotion to the Conference League goes their way.

Everton (+£42.43m)

David Moyes’ side have always been frugal in the transfer market with only a few big-money signings here and there. They are the only Premier League club in the last five years who have a positive net spend and are looking forward to a big future at their new stadium away from Goodison Park.

Fulham (-£95.63m)

Fulham are another club who have become a Premier League regular and don’t show signs of falling off anytime soon.

Leeds United (-£59.93m)

Leeds have not spent major money this summer after their recent promotion back to the Premier League but did make a bid of around £30m for Igor Paixao. However, they missed out after he moved to French side Marseille.

Liverpool (-£344.03m)

The Premier League champions are known for being smart in the transfer market and have gone huge this summer. They have spent a lot on Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike, who they beat Newcastle to, and they also bid over £100m for Alexander Isak and could return with a bigger bid. But they have sold well, with Luis Diaz leaving for Bayern Munich and Darwin Nunez in talks with Al Hilal over a move to Saudi Arabia.

Manchester City (-£352.04m)

Pep Guardiola has always been known as a heavy hitter in the transfer market and it has worked well with multiple Premier League titles and a Champions League arriving at the Etihad over the last five years. They were finally dethroned as league winners last season and look to bounce back this coming season.

Manchester United (-£662.17m)

Despite their failure to achieve European football last season, Ruben Amorim’s side have been big spenders in this summer’s transfer window and even look close to another big move as they surge ahead of Newcastle in the race to sign Benjamin Sesko.

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Newcastle United (-£364.82m)

Newcastle have signed some expensive players over the last few years with headline signings Sandro Tonali from AC Milan and Alexander Isak. Howe and the club have attempted to go even bigger this year with club-record bids for Hugo Ekitike and Benjamin Sesko but they have missed out on each of of these strikers and will have to look elsewhere for less inspired names to add to the squad this window.

Nottingham Forest (-£193.67m)

Forest have been a force to be reckoned with since their promotion to the Premier League after signing a whole new squad of players when they first came up. They have stabilised now under Nuno Espirito Santo and achieved a surprising European place last year.

Sunderland (-£100.59m)

Newcastle’s North East rivals have returned to the top-flight with a bang and the highlight of their summer has been the signing of the experienced Switzerland international captain Granit Xhaka. They are hoping to break the trend of promoted sides going straight back down and have spent nearly £100m in this window alone.

Tottenham (-£537.24m)

Tottenham have spent a lot of money in recent years but had an absurd season last time out after finishing near the relegation places in the league but winning their first trophy in over a decade when they won the Europa League. They will be hoping for more stability after sacking Ange Postecoglou and bringing in Thomas Frank from Brentford.

West Ham (-£273.39m)

The Hammers have always liked to spend a significant outlay in the summer but have been more shy this year. They came into a huge windfall after selling Declan Rice to Arsenal for a fee totalling £105m in 2023.

Wolves (-£15.21m)

Wolves have been steady in the league for years but have fallen near the lower end of the table in recent times and could get dragged into the relegation race if the promoted sides are competitive this season.

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