According to reports in the North East media, Newcastle United had been in advanced talks with Saints about signing Mohammed Salisu, that is until Sport Republic took over and stopped the deal dead in it's tracks.
Of course the new owners will be keen to put out positive PR in the early days of their ownership, but this rumour about why Newcastle did not land Salisu in the January window has emanated in the North East Media rather than from that in the South, whom you would expect to be briefed on this sort of thing.
According to football media outlet 90min’s northern-based transfer correspondent Graeme Bailey, Newcastle had a deal agreed with Saints for £40 million to take the central defender to St James Park.
The report confirmed :
Salisu was a target picked out early by Newcastle’s new owners of their own, back in late 2021 and added that a deal had been progressing with talks summarised by a £40million transfer including add-ons and bonuses.
Bailey continued that Eddie Howe’s side were hopeful of completing the move early in January but Sport Republic wasted no time in cancelling it altogether.
Most Saints fans would recognise the nature of this deal, they can relate it to a number of promising Saints stars of the past, whether it was Ted Bates with Martin Chivers, Lawrie McMenemy with Mike Channon, Chris Nicholl with Danny Wallace, Virgil Van Dijk or a raft of players, the Saints way has been find them cheap and sell them at a Premium.
The deals I have mentioned all have one thing in common, they were good business for the club, the only time it fails is when the money is reinvested badly and that was the case after Van Dijk left.
So if Salisu had gone, then yes he would have been a loss on the playing side, but £40 million in the kitty would have done a lot more for the club and they will feel that perhaps they already have Salisu's replacement on the books in Dynel Simeu.
But Simeu isn't ready just yet and pre Sport Republic's arrival, Saints needed the money to pay the bills, now they seemingly don't.
So Saints fans will be glad to hear that as was promised, Sport Republic are not going to change the strategy, but they are going to change the way we implement that strategy, we will no longer be backed into a corner with a transfer, we can afford to hold tight to the money is right for us and we get the optimum fee for the player.
£40 million might be good for Salisu now, as £75 million for Van Dijk was 4 years ago, but another year and he could be worth twice that, now we can do things not only quicker as was alluded too, but at our own pace.
Just how much of 90 mins claim is actually true is open for debate, after all Newcastle have signed a fair few players in the transfer window, but the feeling is that none of them are long term, most possibly will never play for the club again if they keep them up, Newcastle will sign a better calibre of player.
But for now they have had to sign journeymen, perhaps they are briefing their own media that they are looking to the future and chasing players who can take the club forward long term, certainly this has come from the North East.
But whatever the situation, we will perhaps never know how close the two clubs where to a deal, but we do know Salisu is still our player, we have shown we will hold our players now, we aren't going to spent £40 million ourselves, at least just not yet, but the club's abilities to hold on to its own players has changed and for the good.