Newcastle United figure departs after summer transfer window - new role lined up
Newcastle United departure set to be confirmed after summer transfer window.
Steve Nickson has left his role as Newcastle United’s head of recruitment following the end of the summer transfer window.
The Gazette reported in June that Nickson was set to end his 15-year stint at Newcastle after agreeing to join ambitious Championship side Wrexham.
The 61-year-old remained in position at St James’ Park during the summer, a period of major change for the club following a change in head coach, three big-name departures and eight new signings, all of whom were aged 24 or under.
The strategy was led by sporting director Ross Wilson in what was his first summer window since joining from Premier League rivals Nottingham Forest last October.
The Magpies sold Anthony Gordon and Sandro Tonali, and signed Ewen Jaouen, Bazoumana Toure, Sean Steur, Aladji Bamba and Lukas Hornicek before Eddie Howe stepped down as head coach. Matthias Jaissle replaced Howe and immediately lost Bruno Guimaraes, however ended the summer in positive fashion with the arrivals of Amar Dedic, Nico Gonzalez and Matias Fernandez-Pardo.
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Steve Nickson leaves Newcastle United
While Nickson has retained a senior role within the recruitment team, recent appointments have seen others take a more prominent lead on transfers. At Wrexham, however, he will be at the heart of the operation as their new sporting director.
Nickson joined the Magpies from Blackburn Rovers in 2011 in a youth recruitment role before being promoted to head of recruitment under Rafael Benitez in 2017.
He remained in his post following United’s PIF-led takeover in October 2021, helping the club identify several key players during a period of significant transfer investment.
Nickson visited Brazil in January 2022 to finalise the £40million signing of Bruno Guimaraes from Lyon. Other key additions such as Anthony Gordon, Lewis Hall, Sven Botman, Alexander Isak and Sandro Tonali also arrived under Nickson’s watch.
Those players played a key role in helping Newcastle qualify for the Champions League on two occasions, while also ending the club’s 56-year trophy drought last year by winning the Carabao Cup.
It’s understood Nickson attracted interest from West Ham United but opted for a move to North East Wales.
The Welsh side, owned by Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, secured three consecutive promotions - taking them from the National League to the Championship - before narrowly missing out on the play-offs last year.
On joining Wrexham, Nickson said: “I am very excited to be joining Wrexham AFC as Sporting Director.
“This is a Club with incredible momentum, a unique culture and a clear ambition. The journey so far has been remarkable, with three consecutive promotions and a seventh-place finish in the Club’s first season back in the second tier.
“I am looking forward to working closely with Phil Parkinson, the coaching staff and the wider sporting team to continue developing the Club’s recruitment, scouting and football operations.
“There is already a strong foundation in place, and my focus will be on helping Wrexham take the next step by building the structure, talent pathways and football operations needed to support the Club’s ambition of reaching the Premier League.”