‘We can’t just spend’ - Paul Mitchell attacks key Newcastle United department after transfer window failings

Paul Mitchell has sensationally claimed Newcastle United’s scouting network is not up to scratch following the summer transfer window.

Toon chiefs have come under fire in recent days after an underwhelming off-season saw no major signings. Lloyd Kelly on a free transfer was the only addition who could arguably improve the starting line-up.

Failing to land Marc Guehi - despite pursuing the Crystal Palace star for several weeks - also left Newcastle with egg on their faces. A boardroom shake-up saw Mitchell replace Dan Ashworth as sporting director, with CEO Darren Eales given more authority after Amanda Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi sold their remaining shares.

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Mitchell was tasked as the man to secure Guehi - a player at the top of Howe’s wish list. Reports suggested Palace demanded as much as £75million in the closing stages of the window.

That price tag, largely due to FFP/PSR restrictions, repelled Newcastle's interest, with Mitchell reminding the media about points deductions to Everton and Nottingham Forest last season. The 43-year-old also highlighted the scouting department as a major area for improvement at St James’ Park.

“‘There are things we got wrong in our strategy for sure," Mitchell told a room of reporters. "Me coming in when I did probably wasn’t the best timing for the organisation but what it has done is allow me to witness a process.

"As custodians of this club, we can’t just keep spending, spending, spending because at some point that won’t enable the club to facilitate its goals.

“I don’t think any Newcastle fan wants to see this club in a place where other clubs were last season with docked points (or) financial penalties because that can really affect our growth.

“Should our scouting and recruitment be driven more extensively with a wider reaching net? It definitely should be because this is becoming a really nuanced space now. You can’t just capital fund everything every year and buy loads of players at peak age and peak price.”

“Was, let’s say, the scouting network, the lengths and breadths of our process and our strategies, including the influence of Eddie Howe, bigger and broader enough? Probably not. And that’s the bit we analyse to be better. That’s the bit we have to adjust and modernise.”

Newcastle’s new sporting director confirmed Howe was given a key voice in which players arrived. This came after several sources suggested a behind-the-scenes dispute over who yielded the most power over transfers.

While continuing to stress financial sensibility, Mitchell insisted Howe was a leading player and the club were not prepared to “overpay” for incomings who would not “bring a difference” to the first team. He added: “Every single player we looked at, Ed (Howe) wanted to explore to try and sign or have an extensive conversation. 

“There was no player who got to a certain level of discussion that he wasn’t part of the deciding and saying ‘That’s who I want’. Ultimately, unless Eddie really felt a player was going to bring a difference to the starting XI, we’d rather not overpay that once again in the next window. 

“Would it have been easier to sit in front of you with hallmark signings that cost a load of money? Of course. But to ultimately have them at the detriment of Newcastle’s ability to grow for Paul Mitchell’s glorification? That’s not what I’m paid to do. I’m paid to do the job in the short, medium and long term.”