This has been a busy summer for Newcastle United fans.
A lot to process.
Pretty much all Newcastle United fans express their frustration and anger at the Premier League and UEFA financial restrictions.
However, when it then comes to the day to day reality, many (most?) supporters react very differently.
It is all very well understanding and accepting it as a general detached concept in the ether, the fact that Newcastle United are at a huge disadvantage compared to certain other Premier League clubs, but then when it comes to individual transfers that all goes out of the window (for many people)!!
I see a lot of Newcastle United fans talking of Anthony Gordon and Sandro Tonali as the worst of the worst BUT the Newcastle United owners were at least as happy to sell them, as the players were to move on!
The last available financial figures are from the 2026 Deloitte football club rich lost report, detailing the clubs around the world with the biggest turnovers in world football for the 2024/25 season. Near the top end you had Liverpool with a €836m turnover, Man City a €829m turnover, Arsenal a €822m turnover, Man U a €793m turnover, Spurs a €673m turnover and Chelsea a €584m turnover. Newcastle United with a €398m turnover.
So Liverpool, Arsenal, Man City and Man U all having turnovers double or more than Newcastle’s, Spurs around 70% more than NUFC, Chelsea around 50% more than United. This is before you get to all the other advantages they have built up over a decade and a half whilst Mike Ashley was dragging Newcastle United in the other direction, building zero foundations for the future.
You then transfer these turnovers to how they impact on transfer fees and wages, in very rough terms the UEFA SCR rules mean that Newcastle United and these other Premier League clubs are allowed to spend 70% of their club turnovers on transfer fees and wages.
So whilst Newcastle United are allowed to spend 70% of €398m turnover, Liverpool, Man City, Arsenal and Man U can spend 70% of €800m+ (798m+ for pedantics!) on players and wages.
Those six clubs have the highest six wage bills and pay all of the very biggest transfer fees. All of the £100m+ transfer fees paid by an EPL club have been by these half dozen and indeed, all transfer fees above the £65m (plus potential £4.3m add-ons) paid for Nick Woltemade have been paid by those same six clubs.
I don’t believe that the Newcastle United owners were really upset to sell Bruno Guimaraes, I think they were just upset they didn’t get more than £75m for him.
Incoming signings see the transfer fee amortised (spread) across the number of years of the contract, so £35m paid for Aladji Bamba, means with his five year contract only £7m goes into the accounts each financial year as an expense.
Even in plain cash terms, the £75m Bruno Guimaraes total transfer fee would almost cover the signings of Bamba, Hornicek and Steur.
Whilst just as importantly, arguably even more so, highest NUFC wage earner Bruno Guimaraes will now have doubled his wages at Arsenal BUT at the same time the wages he was earning will cover all three of Steur, Bamba and Hornicek I would assume.
Newcastle United’s by far biggest priority is to seriously increase their revenues/turnover in the years to come, that is the ONLY way to compete long-term.
So when many Newcastle United fans scoff at the idea of spending around £13m on a Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg or Joao Palhinha (both aged 31) to give the midfield extra experience and guidance, this is the reality we are living in.