Newcastle United do not do run-of-the-mill summer windows anymore. They have come to specialise in turbulent and extremely eventful off-seasons.

From star-player sales to the departure of Eddie Howe during pre-season, the appointment of a relatively unknown head coach in Matthias Jaissle and the recruitment of eight young players as part of the bold and risky “Newcastle 2.0” reset, transformation has swept through Tyneside.

Here, The Athletic reviews another rollercoaster summer at St James’ Park.

Was this window a success or a failure?

Members of Newcastle’s hierarchy view it as an overriding success — having followed and “executed”, as they put it, a coherent plan, while being dexterous enough to react to unforeseen or unwanted events — and a summer that felt stormy and occasionally desperate for supporters has ended with increasing positivity and optimism.

As those connected with Newcastle have discovered, judging windows in their immediate aftermath can be imprecise, as perceptions are a moveable feast. But in the here and now, excitement and anticipation grip the fanbase.

There is a real risk element to what Newcastle have done, as those at the top of the club accept, with experience and proven class sold (albeit for very healthy sums) and young, hungry but mostly unproven players brought in.

All of Newcastle’s eight signings are 24 or under, including 18-year-old Sean Steur. Only Nico Gonzalez has played in the Premier League before. Jaissle, their 38-year-old head coach, is also a novice when it comes to managing in Europe’s top-five leagues.

But there is a real energy and impetus behind Newcastle following an encouraging couple of weeks, on and off the field, during which Nico and Mathias Fernandez-Pardo have been acquired, the team have gone unbeaten in their opening three games and the club have announced their intention to build a new £190million ($256.4m) training ground.

Change was desperately required at Newcastle, given the team felt stale during the final half-season of Howe’s tenure. Whether the scale of the squad turnover this summer is conducive to short-term success remains to be seen, but Newcastle feel like they have genuine momentum behind them for the first time in 18 months.

At the very least, they will not be boring to follow this season.

Matias Fernandez-Pardo impressed for Lille last season (Frederic Dides/AFP via Getty Images)

How much did they spend and how much did they bring in?

Spent: approximately £268million/$362m (but £300m, including all potential add-ons)

Received: approximately £231m (but £245m, including all potential add-ons)

Net spend: £37m (not including add-ons)

Who have they signed?

Eight players, while three stars were sold.

Anthony Gordon went to Barcelona in late May, helping make Newcastle UEFA-compliant. In his place, Newcastle brought in Bazoumana Toure from Hoffenheim for £43m (although he was not first choice), before long-term target Fernandez-Pardo followed from Lille on deadline day for €60m (£51.5m, $69.4m). Stylistically, Fernandez-Pardo appears a far more comfortable fit than Nick Woltemade, who was loaned to Juventus.

The exorbitant Sandro Tonali money from Tottenham Hotspur — a guaranteed £92.5m, potentially rising to £100m — was then used to augment other areas. The kitty was further bolstered by the unwanted and unplanned sale of Bruno Guimaraes, their former captain, to Arsenal for a £75m fixed fee.

Those two automatic starting midfielders were replaced by Steur, who joined from Ajax for an initial £20.1m, Aladji Bamba, who cost £30m from Monaco, and later Nico. The Spaniard was signed from Manchester City for £48m and was a window-defining addition. His acquisition, at least as far as instant-window assessments go, appears to be one of the most reasonably priced deals of the summer.

Kieran Trippier was released in June, so Amar Dedic, the 24-year-old full-back who worked with Jaissle at Red Bull Salzburg, was brought in from Benfica for around £29.5m and has made a magnificent early impression.

The goalkeeper department was also completely revamped, with Lukas Hornicek joining from Braga for £25.7m to become the new No 1, and Ewen Jaouen signing from Reims as backup for £18.5m. Nick Pope remains on the books, though Aaron Ramsdale returned to Southampton following his loan.

Were there any deals they wanted to do that they didn’t get over the line?

Two of Newcastle’s top summer targets went elsewhere, despite deals being in place for both.

Victor Munoz, the winger, looked set to sign from Osasuna in June, only for Liverpool to gazump Newcastle at the last moment. Johan Manzambi, the Switzerland midfielder, meanwhile, who was Newcastle’s principal target across the board, opted to move to Aston Villa.

Marseille’s Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Bayern Munich’s Joao Palhinha were also among experienced midfield targets last month, though Newcastle believe their respective rejections proved serendipitous, seeing as they brought in Nico instead. Porto’s Victor Froholdt was also greatly admired, but a deal was not feasible.

Are there still any obvious gaps in the team?

‘Obvious gaps’ in the starting XI would be stretching it.

There is not necessarily a natural creative No 10-type to play behind the striker in Jaissle’s 4-2-3-1 system, though the German has retained Joe Willock and has an array of versatile attackers who can be deployed there or interchange within a fluid front four.

Depth at left-back is a concern and, ideally, Newcastle would have brought in two full-backs. Dedic and Tino Livramento can cover both sides, which helps, and Dan Burn remains an emergency left-back option.

In future windows, a younger, faster centre-back feels required to augment an ageing cohort, with Burn and Fabian Schar both 34 and only Malick Thiaw possessing much pace.

Dan Burn is an option at left-back if Newcastle find themselves stretched (Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Do they have the squad to achieve their goals for the season?

The cop-out answer would be to ask, ‘What actually are Newcastle’s goals?’

Financially, they need to regain European revenues and will be budgeting for a top-seven finish.

Realistically, that would be an excellent on-field achievement, given the squad churn and the late change of coach. But a top-half finish and sneaking into Europe should be the aim.

Do they have a squad capable of achieving that? Your guess is as good as mine. There are so many variables when it comes to how quickly the young players will adapt, how Jaissle handles more challenging times ahead, and also how other teams fare, given how many other sides are in a state of flux, too.

It will be fascinating to see how Newcastle perform.

Will Jaissle be happy?

Head coaches always want more in the market, but Newcastle have backed Jaissle and it will be difficult for him to argue otherwise.

Unlike Howe, who saw his best players being sold from his team and may have felt he was being deprived of the tools necessary to succeed, Jaissle never actually had Gordon, Tonali or Guimaraes to call upon. The German wanted an experienced No 6, a full-back and another starting attacker — and Newcastle delivered on all three.

Undoubtedly, in future windows, Jaissle will want to reshape the squad in his own image, but although it is short of top-flight know-how, Newcastle’s squad is high on hunger and energy.

What will their priority be in January?

There is no obvious priority. Newcastle did not miss out on strengthening the key positions they really pushed to augment.

Perhaps bringing in another full-back, should Newcastle find themselves stretched there, or acquiring a young centre-half who then has time to become embedded within the group.

Will they have money to spend?

Without outgoings, club sources — speaking anonymously so they could talk freely — have suggested finances will be tight.

Newcastle do not need to sell mid-season to be UEFA-compliant — which is the huge upside to their summer of sales, which has brought them back into the black — but the decision to spend big on Fernandez-Pardo means that further disposable income is extremely short.

The club did debate whether to “keep our powder dry” until January, but opted to bring in Fernandez-Pardo instead. A sale or two could unlock mid-season spending if required, though.

What is their strongest XI now that the window is shut

(4-2-3-1) Lukas Hornicek; Amar Dedic, Malick Thiaw, Sven Botman, Lewis Hall; Nico Gonzalez, Lewis Miley; Harvey Barnes, Yoane Wissa, Matias Fernandez-Pardo; Will Osula

The full list of ins and outs

Incomings:

• Ewen Jaouen (goalkeeper) — Reims, £18.5m
• Bazoumana Toure (forward) — Hoffenheim, £43m
• Sean Steur (midfielder) — Ajax, £20.1m
• Aladji Bamba (midfielder) — Monaco, £30m
• Lukas Hornicek (goalkeeper) — Braga, £25.7m
• Amar Dedic (full-back) — Benfica, £29.5m
• Nico Gonzalez (midfielder) — Manchester City, £48m
• Matias Fernandez-Pardo (forward) — Lille, £51.4m

Outgoings:

• Anthony Gordon (forward) — Barcelona, (up to) £68.6m
• Sandro Tonali (midfielder) — Tottenham Hotspur, £92.5m (potentially rising to £100m)
• Bruno Guimaraes (midfielder) — Arsenal, £75m
• Nick Woltemade (forward) — Juventus, loan
• Odysseas Vlachodimos (goalkeeper) — Sevilla, loan
• Kieran Trippier (full-back) — Wolverhampton Wanderers, free transfer
• Matt Targett (full-back) — Hull City, free transfer
• Emil Krafth (full-back) — released
• John Ruddy (goalkeeper) — Wolverhampton Wanderers, free transfer
• Harrison Ashby (full-back) — Luton Town, loan
• Alex Murphy (defender) — Kaiserslautern, loan
• Antonio Cordero (forward) — Cadiz, loan
• Anthony Munda (midfielder) — Swindon Town, loan
• Rory Finneran (midfielder) — Notts County, loan
• Sean Neave (forward) — Wolverhampton Wanderers, loan

A summer of incomings, outgoings, and a familiar post-window uncertainty over how the forthcoming months will unfold for West Ham United.

The Championship side were one of the busiest clubs in the window, having struck 21 deals — 12 out, nine in — with the departures of Mateus Fernandes to Tottenham Hotspur and Crysencio Summerville to Al Hilal the most high-profile.

West Ham also retained club captain Jarrod Bowen, Taty Castellanos and Konstantinos Mavropanos, while Arne Engels, Manor Solomon, Joel Piroe and Divine Mukasa were their headline summer additions.

Having been winless in their first three league games, amid calls from fans for head coach Nuno Espirito Santo to be sacked, his side belatedly kickstarted their promotion ambitions with a 4-2 home win against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Tuesday.

Following the closure of the window, The Athletic has reviewed West Ham’s summer recruitment to assess if it will be enough to boost their immediate return to the Premier League.

Was this window a success or a failure?

All things considered, the club could have recruited better.

In the wake of David Sullivan’s resignation as vice-chairman in June, amid “serious historic allegations” made against him — which he says are “factually incorrect and entirely false” — Daniel Kretinsky and Vanessa Gold, West Ham’s shareholders, insisted their goal was to “stabilise West Ham United, retain as many of our key players as possible and, under the management of Nuno Espirito Santo, secure an immediate return to the Premier League.”

But ongoing uncertainty over the ownership made it an unsettling window. There was a scattergun approach towards defensive targets and a shift from targeting permanent deals to loans. West Ham still look light in wide areas.

Will the head coach be happy?

In Nuno’s post-match interview after the 1-1 draw against Watford, he hinted that he felt his club could have acted quicker to pursue transfer targets.

“It was not perfect but understandable,” said Nuno. “We took some time. We were patient to try to choose our targets. It could have been faster (with signing our targets) but it is what it is. We have players coming in, so we are building. The more important thing is after the window closes. We take a look at how balanced and how strong we are to deal with the competition.”

He alluded to this once more after the win against Wolves.

“We, as a club, as a manager, we always want more,” he said. “But we’ve been patient to identify the right targets that come with purpose and character. The only thing is I would love to have them sooner, but I understand the circumstances and now we are catching up with the players that joined us one week ago. We will gel. We are positive.”

How much did West Ham spend and how much did they bring in?

West Ham spent in the region of £46m ($62.2m) on Engels, Solomon, Piroe, Mukasa, Edvin Austbo, Adama Boiro, Keiber Lamadrid and Joel Veltman.

The Athletic reported in May that the club needed to raise £150m ($202.9m) in player sales following their relegation. The club recouped over £200m ($270.6m) following the permanent exits of Fernandes, Summerville, El Hadji Malick Diouf, Freddie Potts, James Ward-Prowse, Callum Marshall and George Earthy.

West Ham sold Mateus Fernandes to Tottenham Hotspur for £85million (Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

Who have they signed?

Engels joined from Scottish side Celtic for a fee in the region of £22million — a record buy for a Championship club — Solomon arrived for £5m from London rivals Tottenham Hotspur, and in June, the club activated a £1m option to convert Lamadrid’s loan from Venezuelan side Deportivo La Guaira into a permanent deal.

Veltman arrived on a free transfer from Brighton & Hove Albion, Piroe on a loan with an obligation to buy from Leeds United, and Mukasa, Morato and Boiro joined on loans from Manchester City, Nottingham Forest and Athletic Club respectively.

Were there any deals they wanted to do that they didn’t get over the line?

Despite the business done, this was still a frustrating window for West Ham.

Everton turned down their enquiry to sign defender Michael Keane on a permanent deal. The Championship club’s season-long loan offer for Roma left-back Anass Salah-Eddine failed to result in a switch to the London Stadium.

West Ham held an interest in Manchester United left-back Harry Amass, who remained at Old Trafford. Ryan Giles, of Hull City, and Melvin Bard, who joined Leeds United from Nice on loan, were also among the defensive targets.

Sheffield United midfielder Sydie Peck featured on West Ham’s shortlist but their interest never reached an advanced stage. Brighton & Hove Albion winger Amario Cozier-Duberry was an option before he joined Middlesbrough on loan. West Ham were also linked with former Spurs striker Troy Parrott before he completed his switch to La Liga side Real Betis from AZ.

West Ham had a bid for Everton defender Michael Keane knocked back (Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

Sanctioning outgoings proved equally difficult, with Edson Alvarez and Soungoutou Magassa staying despite wanting to leave. Sources with knowledge of the situation, speaking anonymously to protect relationships, say West Ham intended to sell the trio of Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Niclas Fullkrug and Jean-Clair Todibo, but had to settle with them joining Aston Villa, Werder Bremen and Lens on loan respectively. Todibo continued his stance that he would never play under Nuno again.

Academy graduate Ollie Scarles garnered some interest towards the end of the window. West Ham rejected Levante’s loan offer and permanent bids from Middlesbrough and Burnley for the 20-year-old, who could now be Nuno’s first-choice left-back following Diouf’s £40million ($54.4m) switch to Brentford, although Boiro offers competition for that position.

Maxwel Cornet, whose last competitive outing for West Ham was against Crystal Palace in April 2024, failed to attract interest.

Do they have the squad to achieve their goals for the season?

The lack of experienced understudies for wingers Solomon and Bowen could hinder West Ham. Lamadrid, Austbo and academy prospect Joshua Ajala are the likeliest options to replace the duo from the bench.

But Lamadrid has only made three appearances under Nuno, Austbo is a promising talent but untested in the Championship, and it is unclear if Ajala will continue his development with the under-21s despite his recent goals against Southampton in the Carabao Cup.

Although West Ham remain porous defensively, the addition of Morato from Nottingham Forest should help strengthen their back line. The other options in central defence include Mavropanos, Maximilian Kilman and Airidas Golambeckis. Veltman is also capable of playing at centre-back. Central midfield is the strongest area of the squad and the club has good cover in both full-back positions.

What is their strongest XI now that the window is shut?

4-4-2: Hermansen, Walker-Peters, Mavropanos, Kilman, Scarles; Bowen (c), Engels, Mukasa, Solomon; Pablo, Castellanos

The full list of ins and outs

Incomings:

• Arne Engels (£22m/$29.7 from Celtic)
• Edvin Austbo (£18m/$24.3m from Viking)
• Manor Solomon (£5m/$6.7m from Tottenham Hotspur)
• Keiber Lamadrid (£1m/$1.3m from Deportivo La Guaira)
• Adama Boiro (season-long loan from Athletic Club)
• Morato (season-long loan from Nottingham Forest)
• Joel Piroe (season-long loan from Leeds United)
• Divine Mukasa (season-long loan from Manchester City)
• Joel Veltman (free transfer from Brighton & Hove Albion)

Outgoings:

• Mateus Fernandes (£85m/$112m to Tottenham Hotspur)
• Crysencio Summerville (€70m/£60m to Al Hilal)
• El Hadji Malick Diouf (£40m/54.4m to Brentford)
• Freddie Potts (£10m/$13.5m to Club Brugge)
• James Ward-Prowse (undisclosed fee to Southampton)
• Callum Marshall (undisclosed fee to Luton Town)
• George Earthy (undisclosed fee to Reading)
• Aaron Wan-Bissaka (season-long loan to Aston Villa)
• Niclas Fullkrug (season-long loan to Werder Bremen)
• Kaelan Casey (season-long loan to Stevenage Town)
• Callum Wilson (free transfer to Brentford)
• Adama Traore (free transfer to Deportivo La Coruna)

“We must continue to evolve, invest and innovate, while remaining true to the principles that have brought us this far,” owner-chairman Tony Bloom told fans in his programme notes last month before Brighton & Hove Albion launched their 10th Premier League season in succession with a 4-0 home win against Aston Villa.

That was certainly the case throughout a hectic summer transfer window involving a total of 33 changes to the playing staff and approximately £365million worth of trading.

Carlos Baleba made a £70m move to Manchester United — the second biggest fee received in Brighton’s history — while a club record £46m was paid for 19-year-old Croatian central defender Luka Vuskovic from Tottenham headed 11 new signings in a major overhaul of Fabian Hurzeler’s squad.

The feverish activity went to the wire, with the arrival on deadline day of defensive midfielder Chema Andres from Stuttgart and winger Femi Azeez from Millwall in the early hours of Wednesday morning. Eight players also left permanently or on loan on the last day of trading.

The Athletic takes a deep breath and unpacks what it all means.

Was this window a success or a failure?

A question that is difficult to answer, because so much of Brighton’s business nowadays is on a global scale. It is hard to evaluate beyond superficial showreels and country-specific data how successfully (and how soon) overseas signings will adapt to the challenges of playing in the Premier League and their new environment away from football.

Proof will not come not even by the end of the season, but over the next few seasons. How has each new signing worked out? Did the club get more deals right than wrong during this window?

On past evidence of their increasingly data-driven recruitment model, the verdict is more likely to end up as a tick than a cross.  

---

How much did they spend and how much did they bring in?

These can only ever be ballpark figures, because of the tendency of buyers to want to show they have got a great deal (by excluding add-ons) and sellers to do the reverse (factoring in extras such as appearance-related bonuses and sell-ons).

The figure for incomings is around £170m, taking into account a £22m obligation to buy clause in the signing of Canadian international striker Promise David on loan for the season from Union Saint-Gilloise.

Promise David arrived on loan but with an obligation to buy (Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)

Outgoings have raised in the region of £195m, so overall the club have still made a profit.

---

Who have they signed?

The late moves of Nigerian international winger Azeez, for a package worth around £15m, and former Real Madrid prospect Andres (£15.5m) pushed the number of new arrivals into double figures.

The attacking options have been swelled by the signings of Azeez, Promise (as he prefers to be known) and 19-year-old Nigerian winger Zadok Yohanna (£21.8m from Swedish side AIK).

The centre of defence has been refreshed after the £52m sale of Jan Paul van Hecke to Tottenham Hotspur. Vuskovic, Dutchman Pascal Struijk (an £18m package from Leeds United) and Austrian international Michael Svoboda (£4.3m from Italian Serie B outfit Venezia) have all joined.

The full-back choices have been widened by former Portugal youth international Costinha (£6m from Greek side Olympiacos) and Albania international Jaouen Hadjam (£9.5m from Young Boys in Switzerland).

Two youngsters have come and gone immediately on loan, both to Castellon in the Spanish second tier: former Benfica winger Rodrigo Rego (21) and 18-year-old Colombian midfielder Matias Orozco, who completed a £3.5m switch from Deportivo Cali in his home country on Sunday.

Winger Femi Azeez arrived from Millwall on deadline day (Richard Pelham/Getty Images)

---

Were there any deals they wanted to do that they didn’t get over the line?

Brighton have a list of four or five potential targets by position, sourced initially from Bloom’s worldwide databank. Hurzeler is then heavily involved in discussions on who he likes most. This is the way their recruitment works.

The aim is to land the head coach’s top preference. That will not always be the case. The lists are a closely guarded secret and Brighton are not a leaky club on transfers.

---

Are there still any obvious gaps in the team?

Not after landing Andres, filling the need for a No 6 after Baleba’s exit, even though the latter’s form dipped last season and he was not a regular starter (or finisher) of games. That need became more acute when Mats Wieffer sustained a knee injury at Chelsea on Sunday, which will keep him out for an unspecified period. The Dutchman has been playing at right-back but offers cover in central midfield, where has played for much of his career.

Chema Andres has arrived to fill the gap left by Carlos Baleba (Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP via Getty Images)

Despite scoring 11 goals across the opening four games of this season, there remains a slight doubt about whether, over the course of the season, they have enough goal-power among the pool of strikers after Danny Welbeck’s move to Chelsea.

---

Do they have the squad to achieve their goals for the season?

One of the main goals — not necessarily this season but in the near future — is to win major silverware for the first time. The squad is equipped for a deep run in the Conference League, although bookies making them clear favourites to lift the trophy in Turkey next June is too bullish with Monaco and Atalanta among the competition.

Their rotten luck with draws in domestic competitions continues with a third round visit to Manchester United in the Carabao Cup later this month — although they have a fine recent record at Old Trafford.

Balancing these ambitions with a top half finish in the Premier League after a sequence of 9th, 6th, 11th, 8th and 8th will be tough but achievable.

---

Will the manager/head coach be happy?

You cannot base a head coach’s satisfaction levels on what they say in the public domain, unless, like Hurzeler’s predecessor Roberto De Zerbi, they are sometimes too honest for their own good. The Italian’s exit stemmed from differences over recruitment policy, which he hinted at in press conferences.

Hurzeler has lost the spine of the team he steered to European qualification last season — Van Hecke, Baleba, Welbeck — but he has enough confidence in his own ability to overcome that hurdle with a fresher and younger squad.

---

What will their priority be in January?

Primarily not to lose somebody they do not want to sell midway through the season. They dislike the knee-jerk nature of the shorter winter window, so the majority of their business always takes place in the summer.

Yankuba Minteh’s situation could be one to watch after Liverpool bid for him this summer (Glyn Kirk/AFP via Getty Images)

Yasin Ayari’s situation is one to watch. The Sweden international midfielder is out of contract next summer. Yankuba Minteh’s future is also at a delicate stage after rejected bids of £50m and £60m from Liverpool in this window for the Gambia international winger.

---

Will they have money to spend?

Yes. Bloom is not shy about sanctioning spending when the need arises, within reason. Although Brighton sell big, in the £50m to £100m plus range, they do not buy at those levels. Why? Because players attracting fees of that scale will be on big money, which would disrupt the wage structure. Also, he will not pay above what he regards as reasonable value for a player.

---

What is their strongest XI now the window is shut

Premier League: Verbruggen; Kadioglu, Vuskovic, Dunk, De Cuyper; Gross, Ayari; Minteh, Hinshelwood, Mitoma; Promise.

Conference League: Steele; Wieffer, Struijk, Boscagli, Hadjam; Andres, Yalcouye; Gomez, Rutter, Azeez; Kostoulas.

---

The full list of ins and outs

Ins: Zadok Yohanna (AIK) £21.8m; Costinha (Olympiacos) £8m; Pascal Struijk (Leeds Utd) £18m package; Rodrigo Rego (Benfica) undisclosed; Luka Vuskovic (Tottenham) £46m; Michael Svoboda (Venezia) £4.3m; Promise David (Union Saint-Gilloise) season-long loan + £22m obligation to buy; Jaouen Hadjam (Young Boys) £9.5m; Matias Orozco (Deportivo Cali) £3.5m; Femi Azeez (Millwall) £15m+ package; Chema Andres (Stuttgart) £15.5m

Outs: James Milner (retired); Solly March (released); Adam Webster (released); Jan Paul van Hecke (Tottenham) £52m; Joel Veltman (West Ham) free;
Brajan Gruda (Red Bull Leipzig) loan with buy obligation; Diego Coppola (Paris FC) £15m; James Beadle (Birmingham) season-long loan; Rodrigo Rego (Castellon) season-long loan; Danny Welbeck (Chelsea) undisclosed; Tommy Watson (Leicester City) season-long loan; Facundo Buonanotte (Elche) season-long loan; Carl Rushworth (Coventry City) up to £30m; Harry Howell (Leicester) season-long loan; Carlos Baleba (Manchester United) up to £70m; Charlie Tasker (Rochdale) season-long loan; Caylan Vickers (Burton Albion) undisclosed; Igor Julio (Burnley) £3m plus add-ons; Matias Orozco (Casteallan) season-long loan; Freddie Simmonds (AFC Wimbledon) season-long loan; Amario Cozier-Duberry (Middlesbrough) season-long loan; Mark O’Mahony (Burton Albion) season-long loan; Kamari Doyle (Leicester) season-long loan; Josh Roberston (Fleetwood Town) season-long loan