‘We’re active’ - Ross Wilson releases bold 149-word Newcastle United transfer statement
Newcastle United have signed five players this summer but are not done yet in the transfer market.
Ross Wilson has declared that Newcastle United are “active in the market” ahead of the Premier League opener.
The Magpies have already added five faces to their ranks, with Czech international Lukas Hornicek the latest to arrive last week. However, high-profile exits like Kieran Trippier, Anthony Gordon, Sandro Tonali and Bruno Guimaraes leave big shoes to fill.
Matthias Jaissle told reporters on Thursday that he expects new faces through the door in the coming weeks. Sporting director Wilson has now vowed to strategically strengthen the squad - with funds at the ready after raking in £250million worth of sales.
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‘We’re active’ - Ross Wilson
“We’re active in the market,” Wilson confirmed here in Spain. “We’ve already strengthened the squad, we wanted to have a clear stamp on the window as to what our identity looked like, we wanted to re-energise and refresh it and we can feel it now in a big way.
“The new coach can feel it in a different way because he didn’t work with the players we had before. Of course we want to add more. The support of the guys is there as well.
“Matthias wants to assess what we have as well, which is obvious, he’s been doing that for some time now so he’s got a view on that already and we’re aligned on what we want to do. What we also don’t want to do is make any mistakes by jumping to do something that we don’t really want to do to tick a box.”
David Hopkinson on Bruno Guimaraes sale
On selling Guimaraes - still yet to officially become an Arsenal player - CEO David Hopkinson insisted the £75million fee is good value for the Magpies. He said: “It was not the fee that I think Arsenal had hoped to pay and of course we would have liked an even higher number.
“But I think you’re dealing with sophisticated actors on both sides and that’s what negotiation looks like. It’s a fee that satisfies us. If you want to put a merchandising spin on it, it’s the highest fee for a player in that position at that age.
“Is that a good deal for Newcastle United? I believe it is. But Arsenal are getting a very special player and person so this works from a financial perspective for both sides.”
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