Newcastle United’s last ten January transfer windows analysed showing potential change to come

The January transfer window is open for business and Newcastle United are expected to be one of the busiest clubs over the next month.

Unlike in previous years, when their former owner kept a tight grip on the purse strings at St James Park, the Magpies are now boosted by the considerable wealth of the PIF-led consortium and could be big players in the market.

But to appreciate where you are going, it is sometimes good to look at where you have been and that is why Newcastle World will analyse how the Magpies have fared in a window that is notoriously difficult to navigate one the last ten years.

2021 - Steve Bruce

In: Joe Willock (Arsenal) Loan

Out: Rolando Aarons (Huddersfield Town) Undisclosed fee, DeAndre Yedlin (Galatasaray) Undisclosed fee

With Covid-19 dominating the headlines, the former owner’s final January transfer window got underway with Steve Bruce’s side nervously looking over their shoulders at the Premier League relegation zone.

The month got underway with a 2-1 home defeat against Leicester City, an FA Cup exit at the hands of Arsenal and a depressing 1-0 defeat at Sheffield United.

Further defeats against Arsenal, Aston Villa and Leeds United followed before a 2-0 win at Everton rounded off the on-pitch action on a high.

Off the pitch, speculation linked the Magpies with a move for former loan star Jetro Willems and Leicester City midfielder Hamza Choudhury.

Neither player arrived and the only new addition was the loan signing of Arsenal youngster Joe Willock, who would go on to be an unexpected success as he fired his way to eight goals in 13 games to help the Magpies end the season just below mid-table.

January outgoings saw Rolando Aarons join Championship club Huddersfield Town and DeAndre Yedlin moved to Turkey after agreeing a deal to join Galatasaray.

2020 - Steve Bruce

In: Nabil Bentaleb (Schalke 04) Loan, Valentino Lazaro (Inter) Loan, Danny Rose (Spurs) Loan

Out: Kelland Watts (Mansfield Town) Loan, Rolando Aarons (Motherwell) Loan, Ki Sung Yueng (Released)

The Magpies were comfortably mid-table as they approached the January transfer window with the aim of challenging for a top-half finish in Steve Bruce’s first season in charge.

FA Cup progress had been sealed with wins against lower-league opposition in Rochdale and Oxford United and Isaac Hayden’s late goal secured a shock home win against Chelsea.

Florian Lejeune’s late double strike secured a memorable draw at Everton and gave a positive end to a month that had started with a poor display in a 3-0 home loss against Leicester City.

Ambitious transfer targets were mentioned in media circles with Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud and Liverpool’s Adam Lallana linked with a move to St James Park.

Three loan signings would be completed with Nabil Bentaleb, Valentino Lazaro and England international Danny Rose all moving to Tyneside on temporary deals.

The trio hardly set the world alight during their time at St James Park and all three players returned to their parent clubs at the end of the campaign.

January outgoings saw promising defender Kelland Watts agree a loan move to Mansfield Town and Rolando Aarons’ latest attempt to rejuvenate his career saw him join SPL club Motherwell. South Korean midfielder Ki Sung Yueng was also released by the Magpies.

2019 - Rafa Benitez

In: Miguel Almiron (Atlanta United) £20.7m, Antonio Barreca (Monaco) Loan

Out: Jamie Sterry (Crewe Alexandra), Callum Roberts (Colchester United), Jacob Murphy (West Brom), Rolando Aarons (Sheffield Wednesday), Achraf Lazaar (Sheffield Wednesday) All loans

Rafa Benitez’s final transfer window saw United break their transfer record for the first time since they parted with £17m to sign Real Madrid and England striker Michael Owen way back in August 2005.

Prolonged negotiations to sign Atlanta United’s Paraguayan international Miguel Almiron finally came to an end on the same night as a shock 2-1 home win against Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City.

Almiron provided energy and abundance as he formed part of a lively attacking trio also containing Ayoze Perez and Salomon Rondon that played a key role in a promising end to the campaign.

Wing-back Antonio Barreca also arrived on a loan deal from Monaco - but made just one substitute appearance before returning to the French club.

Several young players were also allowed to leave the club on loan during January.

2018 - Rafa Benitez

In: Kenedy (Chelsea) Loan, Islam Slimani (Leicester City) Loan, Martin Dubravka (Sparta Prague) Loan

Out: Aleksandar Mitrovic (Fulham) Loan, Sean Longstaff (Blackpool) Loan extended, Adam Armstrong (Blackburn Rovers) Loan, Ivan Toney (Scunthorpe United) Loan, Jack Colback (Nottingham Forest) Loan, Freddie Woodman (Aberdeen) Loan, Henri Saivet (Sivasspor) Loan, Dan Barlaser (Crewe Alexandra) Loan

The Magpies were sat in mid-table in their first season back in the Premier League as the January transfer window got underway.

The usual behind the scenes rumblings were well underway as Rafa Benitez looked to strengthen his ranks in order to push into the top half of the table.

Chelsea youngster Kenedy - a target in the summer window - finally arrived and enjoyed a fruitful second half of the season before returning for another loan during the following summer.

Islam Slimani agreed a loan move from Premier League rivals Leicester City and his two key contributions consisted of setting up Matt Ritchie to net the decisive goal in a 2-1 home win against Arsenal and kicking out at West Brom’s Craig Dawson in a move that brought a premature end to his stay on Tyneside.

More notably, goalkeeper Martin Dubravka joined in a loan deal from Sparta Prague and introduced himself to the St James Park faithful in fine style with a match-winning display in a 1-0 win against Manchester United.

The Slovakian international stopper joined on a permanent deal at the end of the season and remains a key figure at the club.

January outgoings were plentiful as Benitez pruned his squad by allowing the likes of Aleksandar Mitrovic, Jack Colback and Henri Saivet to depart on loan.

2017 - Rafa Benitez

In: None!

Out: Sean Longstaff, Callum Roberts, Freddie Woodman (all Kilmarnock) Loans, Tim Krul (AZ Alkmaar) Loan, Ivan Toney (Scunthorpe United) Loan, Cheick Tiote (Beijing Enterprises) Undisclosed fee

Ah the infamous January 2017 transfer window that gave a clear indication things were not well behind the scenes.

Former United star Andros Townsend was continually linked with a return to Tyneside as Benitez looked to add more quality to a squad that was heading towards an immediate return to the Premier League.

There was speculation Townsend would arrive in the last hours of the window but those hopes were dashed on the same night United were held to a frustrating home draw by QPR.

Benitez struggled to hold his frustration in a tense post-match press conference and that led to speculation the Spaniard could walk away from the club.

However, he stayed in his role and led the club back to the Premier League

Benitez did allow the likes of Sean Longstaff and Freddie Woodman to depart on loan and senior players Tim Krul and Check Tiote also left the club - with the latter joining Chinese club Beijing Enterprises.

Tiote passed away in June 2017 after suffering a cardiac arrest and remains a sorely missed figure on Tyneside.

2016 - Steve McClaren

In: Henri Saivet (Bordeaux) £5m, Jonjo Shelvey (Swansea City) £12m, Andros Townsend (Spurs) £12m, Seydou Doumbia (AS Roma) Loan

Out: Shane Ferguson (Millwall) Undisclosed fee, Mike Williamson (Wolves) Undisclosed fee), Florian Thauvin (Marseille) Loan

Relegation was in the air as Steve McClaren’s side entered January sat just outside of the Premier League’s bottom three.

The former England manager was handed the best part of £30m in a bid to avoid the drop and he brought in Spurs winger Andros Townsend, Swansea City midfielder Jonjo Shelvey and Bordeaux’s Henri Saivet.

Ivory Coast striker Seydou Doumbia also arrived on loan and endured a disappointing spell on Tyneside.

Saivet remained at the club until July 2021 without ever securing a regular spot in the first-team under any United manager.

Shelvey remains at the club and is seen as a key part of the Magpies plans this season but Townsend’s time on Tyneside came to an end that summer as he joined Crystal Palace in the aftermath of an unsuccessful battle against relegation.

2015 - Alan Pardew/John Carver

In: None

Out: Hatem Ben Arfa (Released), Adam Campbell, Callum Roberts (both Gateshead) Loans

The January 2015 transfer window was largely dominated by managerial speculation after then-Magpies boss Alan Pardew was given permission to speak to Crystal Palace.

Pardew agreed to take over at his former club and John Carver stepped up to a role as interim manager at St James Park.

United failed to bring in any new players during the window despite being linked with the likes of MK Dons midfielder Dele Alli, Swansea City striker Bafetimbi Gomis and Ipswich Town defender Tyrone Mings.

Enigmatic winger Hatem Ben Arfa was released by the Magpies and joined Hull City and young duo Adam Campbell and Callum Roberts both joined National League neighbours Gateshead.

Despite being comfortably mid-table at the start of the year, the Magpies endured an alarming slump in form and had to rely on a Jonas Gutierrez-inspired final day win against West Ham United to preserve their Premier League status.

2014 - Alan Pardew

In: Luuk de Jong (Borussia Monchengladbach) Loan

Out: Adam Campbell (St Mirren) Loan, Jonas Gutierrez (Norwich City) Loan, Yohan Cabaye (PSG) £18m, Curtis Good (Dundee United) Loan

The Joe Kinnear window! The former manager was inexplicably handed a return to St James Park in a role as the club’s director of football. One of his major tasks was finding a buyer for French midfielder Yohan Cabaye.

The popular Frenchman returned to his homeland with Paris Saint Germain - but it is believed the deal caused friction between Kinnear and the then-United owner after the Magpies received just £18m for one of their key players.

The only incoming player in January was Dutch striker Luuk de Jong but he showed little to suggest that he would go on to star in La Liga with Sevilla or secure a move to Catalan giants Barcelona.

United ended the season in tenth place in the Premier League table.

2013 - Alan Pardew

In: Kevin Mbabu (Servette) Undisclosed fee, Moussa Sissoko (Toulouse) £2m, Massadio Haidara (Nancy) £2.5m, Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa (Montpellier) £6.7m, Mathieu Debuchy (Lille) £5m

Out: Demba Ba (Chelsea) £7.5m, Paul Dummett (St Mirren) Loan, Mehdi Abeid (St Johnstone) Loan, Xisco (Released)

The French revolution arrives to boost the Magpies flagging season! Alan Pardew’s side had failed to build on the previous season’s unexpected fifth place finish and were sat in the bottom five of the table as the January window got underway.

Tensions were raised when key striker Demba Ba joined Chelsea after the Blues matched a buyout clause in his contract - but the £7.5m fee United received would soon be reinvested during a hectic period of transfer activity.

A prolonged hunt for French International right-back Mathieu Debuchy was concluded as the Lille defender was reunited with his good friend Yohan Cabaye at St James Park.

He was joined by fellow Frenchmen Moussa Sissoko, Massadio Haidara and Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa during the final weeks of the window.

The club held a French Day during a 4-2 home win against Southampton as the influx of new additions helped United move away from the relegation zone.

However, a run of just one win in seven games meant the Magpies only secured their Premier League status on the penultimate weekend of the campaign.

2012 - Alan Pardew

In: Papiss Cisse (Freiburg) £9.5m

Out: Alan Smith, James Tavernier (both MK Dons) Loans, Haris Vuckic (Cardiff City) Loan

After making a mockery of pre-season predictions of a relegation battle during the first half of the season, Alan Pardew’s side were quietly eyeing a push for a Champions League spot as the January transfer window got underway.

Summer signings Yohan Cabaye, Demba Ba and Davide Santon have all enjoyed successful introductions to life on Tyneside - but Pardew and chief scout Graham Carr felt a new striker was needed to aid the unexpected push for a top four spot.

The duo persuaded the then-United owner to part with the best part of £9.5m as Senegal striker Papiss Demba Cisse moved to Tyneside from Bundesliga club Freiburg.

Cisse hit the ground running with a stunning debut goal against Aston Villa and went on to end the campaign with 13 goals in 14 games.

Despite the form of their new addition, the Magpies fell just short of securing a Champions League spot - but had still enjoyed a rare high point in the tenure of their former owner.