Newcastle United cannot afford to ignore one key position from the summer transfer shopping list
Newcastle United head coach Eddie Howe
New goalkeeper? Fine. Full-back cover? Good idea. Gordon replacement? Ideally. More midfield options? No problem. Centre-back? Why not.
Newcastle United’s transfer plans have to cover many bases this summer, but it will all count for nothing if they don’t address their biggest weakness right now – and that’s scoring goals.
There are several areas of the starting XI which need urgent attention, and even more in the wider squad, but securing someone who will regularly stick the ball in the back of the net should come before all others. Without doubt.
United’s lack of cutting edge at the sharp end of their forward line cost them dearly last season. You can make an argument over mistakes at the back and an inability to control games which led to them throwing away so many leads – both valid points – but the truth remains that Eddie Howe’s side couldn’t kill sides off when they were on top.
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Yes, they saw leads slip away too often, but only once when they led by two goals, the 2-2 draw with Chelsea last December.
In other words, they failed to get a substantial lead and their brittle confidence was eroded each time they conceded.
That’s not to lay the blame entirely at the feet of the strikeforce, as the side as a whole needed to manage games far better. But how many times were fans left to wonder how things would have been different ‘if Alexander Isak was still in the side’?
We know the reasons for the goalscoring issues, of course, and the root of can be traced back to Isak’s transfer exit. The fact his Liverpool saga dragged on for so long left United with little time to bring in a replacement, and they have been paying for that ever since.
It’s now almost a year since that debacle and United must move past it if they are to reclaim their place among the Champions League contenders.
That means taking the hard decision to go back into the transfer market for goalscoring talent this summer, even after paying £124m for Nick Woltemade and Yoane Wissa.
Whether you class those deals as mistakes or not, failing to act in 2026 will only compound the errors of 2025.
Of course identifying a striker who will get goals at Premier League level, but is not already a target for the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal et al is a difficult task.
Newcastle are looking to raid relatively untapped European markets this summer, in a switch in transfer strategy that should be applauded.
It’s the first test of Ross Wilson as sporting director, but the success this window will go a long way to determining how quickly United can achieve their lofty ambitions.
So yes, sign the players the squad needs. But omit a striker from the shopping list and it could all be for nothing.
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