How much will Newcastle have to spend to challenge for the Premier League title?

Robin Bairner

• Updated: 23 May 2023 08:54 CDT
• 3 min read

Newcastle’s takeover from the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF) promises to change the face of the Premier League, with the St James’ Park side now apparently capable of matching anyone in the transfer market.

Newcastle, though, are starting from a low base. Not only does their squad need an entire renovation, but so too does their youth academy, their training facilities and their management team.

READ MORE: The transfer value of EVERY player

It promises to be a long and expensive journey to the top.

Just how much, though, will Newcastle need to spend on players to have a starting XI good enough to compete for the top four?

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While this is a difficult question to answer with any exactness, using FootballTransfers’ valuations, which are based one hundreds of data points, it is possible to get a ballpark figure.

There are, though, numerous assumptions that are made in this calculation.

1. Newcastle have no players in their squad currently capable of holding down a starting position at a title-challenging club.
2. Players playing for the four major title challengers – Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City and Manchester United – are all there justly on performance.
3. Newcastle would bid for the cheapest regulars at these four clubs and would not look elsewhere for talent.
4. Any bid for these players at FootballTransfers’ valuation would be accepted.
5. They will sign players to play in a 4-2-3-1 formation.

Clearly, these are sweeping statements, but nonetheless they are useful parameters to have when considering the type of players who are established at the Premier League’s biggest sides.

Big spending required

With this in mind, our estimated value of the cheapest players turning out regularly for top four clubs comes to €385.7 million.

Clearly, though, signing these players for this price would be impossible.

Cristiano Ronaldo, for example, would not leave Man Utd for €37.3m, a valuation that has been reached because of his age and not his quality.

Furthermore, this figure does not take into account any other costs, such as wages or, indeed, substitutes and back-up players.

It shows that if Newcastle go down the route of trying to sign established stars, the costs will be astronomical. The advantage that they have, however, is that for PIF, money is little object.