Over the last couple of months, Newcastle United have been plagued with PSR issues, relying on outgoings before signing any players to improve the first-team squad.
Sacrifices had to be made with academy graduate Elliot Anderson sold to Nottingham Forest in a £35m deal to try and stay within the confines of the Premier League’s rules.
However, the 21-year-old wasn’t the only player out the door on Tyneside, with fellow youngster Yankuba Minteh also sold to fellow top-flight side Brighton and Hove Albion in a £33m deal – leaving the club without making a single appearance.
The departures were made even more frustrating when Eddie Howe’s side failed to secure a move for centre-back Marc Guehi with the funds generated – with the club desperately wanting a new central defender before the end of the window.
The Saudi PIF’s ambition since taking over in 2021 cannot be understated, but some of their signings haven’t worked out, with one player in particular looking like a complete waste of money.
Matt Targett’s stats at Newcastle United
After joining Newcastle on loan for the second half of the 2021/22 campaign, left-back Matt Targett made a solid first impression – so much so that the club forked out £15m to sign the Englishman on a permanent deal.
However, two years on from his move to Tyneside, he’s failed to kick on, dropping massively down Howe’s pecking order in recent months.
The 28-year-old has only made 27 appearances in all competitions over the last two campaigns, with centre-back Dan Burn often featuring out of position at full-back, a signal as to how out of favour the former Aston Villa ace has been.
Targett’s transfer fee was hefty enough, but when coupled with his £100k-per-week wages, it’s seen the club spend £25.4m on the defender up to now – a figure that has undoubtedly contributed to their recent financial issues.
However, despite his failed move to the Magpies, Targett still maintains a higher market value than one player who left the club a couple of years ago.
Matt Targett’s market value in 2024
Spanish forward Ayoze Perez was a player who provided numerous moments of magic during a dark spell on the field for Newcastle.
The now 31-year-old made 195 appearances for the club, even featuring in the Championship after relegation in 2016, registering a total of 48 goals in the process.
However, after producing 12 Premier League goals during the 2018/19 season, he departed in a £30m deal to join fellow English side Leicester City – in a move that wasn’t so well received by the supporters.
2014/15
36
7
0
2015/16
34
6
2
2016/17
36
9
7
2017/18
36
8
4
2018/19
37
12
2
Total:
179
42
15
Five years on from his transfer away from Tyneside, Perez has an international winners' medal, after being a part of the Spain squad that triumphed over England at Euro 2024 – but it hasn’t stopped his market value from plummeting in recent times.
The attacker is now only valued at £5.9m as per Transfermarkt, a figure that is lower than Targett, who’s still valued at £8.4m despite his recent exclusion from the Magpies’ squad.
Whilst at the time it was seen as a disappointing deal to allow Perez to leave, the club played a masterstroke with his sale, making a huge chunk of money on a player who only managed to score 15 goals over four years at the Foxes.
His recent decline in value outlines excellent business selling a player at his peak value, with Newcastle getting a better deal than Leicester with the transfer.
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