According to The Sun, Newcastle owner Mike Ashley has offered manager Rafa Benitez a £100m budget over three years if he signs a contract extension with the Magpies but the Spaniard is so suspicious that he will not commit even with the promise of extra cash for players.
Previously The Sun had reported Benitez’s frustrations with Ashley’s transfer policy, with the boss saying that he had to “wheel and deal” in the market to get the players he wanted.
Ashley keeps a tight rein on the budget available to managers at St James’s, and is currently forcing Benitez to sell players to the same value of any additions he would like to make.
So far, the club have sold Mikel Merino to Real Sociedad for £10.8m and used the money to cover the cost of making ex-loanee Martin Dubravka’s move permanent, securing Ki Sung-yueng on a free transfer and taking Kenedy back on loan from Chelsea.
But what other deals might come about thanks to Ashley’s enforced policy this summer if Benitez doesn’t sign the contract? Football FanCast take a look at the potential goings on at Newcastle this summer.
Mitrovic out / Rondon in
Aleksandar Mitrovic was on loan at Fulham for the second half of last season and scored 12 goals in 17 Championship games to fire the West London side to the Premier League via the playoffs. The Serbian striker has since been heavily linked with a £20m permanent move to Craven Cottage and his departure could make room for West Brom front-man Salomon Rondon, who it seems Benitez would prefer to lead the line for his side.
The Magpies recently had an ambitious loan bid for the Venezuelan striker rejected which would have seen them eventually pay £19m, despite his release clause only being a straight £16.5m. For Benitez to be able to pay this though he will first have to offload the troublemaker Mitrovic.
Aarons and Murphy out / Townsend in
To bring in the quality that Benitez wants, he may be forced to offload two players to make up the cost of a new signing. Rolando Aarons looks set to make the opposite move to Rondon this summer as the 22-year-old has been linked heavily with West Brom, but as he is only rated at £630,000 by Transfermarkt the fee he commands will be nowhere near enough to cover the cost of a move for Crystal Palace’s Andros Townsend.
Townsend left Newcastle to join Palace in a £14m deal when the Magpies were relegated from the Premier League at the end of the 2015/16 season, but now Benitez is keen on bringing the 27-year-old winger back to St James’s, according to Sky Sports.
In order to get his target though Benitez should sell Jacob Murphy, who joined the club in July last year. Murphy played 28 games in all competitions last season for Newcastle but registered just one goal and one assist in that time – numbers that are nowhere near good enough for an attacker at a top tier side. Added to that, the 23-year-old is valued at £6.3m by Transfermarkt and could bring in a sizeable chunk of money for Benitez.
Lascelles out / Dawson in
Whilst Benitez may not miss players such as Mitrovic or Aarons, if he is forced to sell his captain it could well be the final nail in the coffin that is the relationship between Ashley and his manager.
Earlier this month Jamaal Lascelles was the subject of a £25m bid from West Ham, which Newcastle did reject, but if a bigger bid does come in for the former Nottingham Forest centre-back then the powers that be may find it too good to turn down.
If Lascelles was to leave the club it would leave Benitez with a lack of leaders. Another raid on West Brom may be the answer for Rafa if this is the case, with 28-year-old Craig Dawson having handed in a transfer request to Baggies boss Darren Moore. Dawson also missed the club’s pre-season training trip to Portugal as he looks for a move back to the Premier League following West Brom’s relegation last season.
Dawson, valued at £20m according to The Daily Mail, could certainly be a success at St James’s with his passion, work rate and ability to get on the score sheet from set pieces but if it means losing his captain, Benitez may not be quite as enthused.
So, Newcastle fans, would you accept the club selling Jamaal Lascelles if it meant two new signings could come in?
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