Eddie Howe backs Dan Ashworth’s ‘unsustainable’ Newcastle United transfer warning

Eddie Howe has sided with Dan Ashworth in admitting that Newcastle United’s current spending in the transfer window is “unsustainable”.

The Magpies have spent £210million on eight new players in 2022 - Kieran Trippier, Chris Wood, Bruno Guimaraes, Dan Burn, Matt Targett, Nick Pope, Sven Botman and Alexander Isak.

But rather than allow that kind of high spending to become the norm, sporting director Ashworth moved to play down expectations during his meeting with the local and national media earlier this month.

“You can’t keep doing that every year,” said the former England and Brighton technical director said. “You just can’t, so consequently we have to look at some emerging talent, enhancing our academy and getting the players through from a different route.”

Howe agreed with Ashworth’s standpoint. The Newcastle head coach said: “Yeah, I do think that’s unsustainable. Financial Fair Play, I know is mentioned a lot, but that will guarantee it. We have to be mindful of that fact. That is where we need to improve all aspects of the football club to make sure we don’t have to go into the transfer market and spend that money.

“Can we produce more of our own players? Can we improve everything we deliver so we are not so reliant on huge transfer fees because it is going to be very difficult for the future for all clubs to spend that kind of money on a consistent basis.

“Dan has made that comment. Obviously I take my information from him so we go into the next window knowing it will be very different from the last one. No two windows are the same. We know we will have to control that spending, for sure.”