Newcastle United Transfer Records: Who Are Newcastle’s Most Expensive Signings Of All Time?

Newcastle United Football Club has undergone a significant transformation in the last year, with new wealthy owners coming into the club. The club’s new Saudi owner Yasir Al-Rumayyan replaced the unpopular Mike Ashley, and the Magpies now have the richest owners in the world game.

The new owners have inevitably decided to splash the cash, and the club from the north east have spent big in recent transfer windows. Here are the Magpies’ ten biggest-ever signings:

Aleksander Isak (Bought from Real Sociedad for £63m)

The Swedish youngster arrived in the north east for a club-record fee of £63m from Spanish club Real Sociedad in the summer of 2022. Isak had been an exciting talent since his teens and made a name for himself in San Sebastian as one of the most promising young strikers in the game.

The forward scored a respective nine goals in his debut campaign before scoring 17 in his second season with La Real. In season 2021/22, his form dipped slightly, but he had already shown enough potential in his first two seasons in Spain for several prominent clubs to show an interest.

Newcastle were the one to stump up the money, and Isak has shown promise in his early displays for the Magpies.

Bruno Guimaraes (Bought from Lyon for £42m)

The highly-rated central midfielder arrived at the club in the January transfer window of 2022 from Lyon for a fee that could rise to around £42m with add-ons. The signing was something of a coup for the Magpies, as the Brazilian international had previously attracted interest from some of Europe’s biggest clubs.

It was also seen as a signal of intent by the club’s new owners, as the midfielder was considered the first marquee signing of their ownership. Guimaraes has impressed in his early Newcastle career and could be a bargain.

Joelinton (Bought from Hoffenheim for £40m)

The Brazilian was a rare big-money transfer move in the latter years of Mike Ashley’s reign as the Magpies owner. The striker arrived from Hoffenheim in the summer of 2019 for £40m. Joelinton had impressed in the Bundesliga, scoring 11 goals and producing nine assists in 35 games.

Unfortunately for everybody involved, Joelinton struggled for attacking returns playing as a central striker. However, Joelinton has reinvented himself as both a central midfielder and a winger, which has seen an improvement in form but not more attacking returns.

Sven Botman (Bought from Lille for £35m)

Botman joined the Magpies in the summer of 2022 from Lille for £35m. His signing is considered another coup by Newcastle, as many rate the Dutch defender as one of the best young up-and-coming players in his position.

Botman originally made his name at Ajax and reportedly had many of the bigger European clubs monitoring his development in the Netherlands and at Lille. However, Newcastle were the ones who paid Botman’s fee and signed a player who could develop into a world-class defender in the future.

Chris Wood (Bought from Burnley for £27m)

The Magpies’ £27m capture of the New Zealand international in the January transfer window of 2022 was not exactly one to get the pulses racing. However, the striker helped Eddie Howe’s team move away from the relegation zone, even if he was not lethal in front of goal.

His signing made sense at the time, as Newcastle competed with Burnley in the fight for survival. Wood’s fee was slightly excessive for a striker who has not exactly been prolific in his Premier League career, however.

Joe Willock (Bought from Arsenal for £26m)

The midfielder initially arrived at Newcastle on loan from Arsenal in the 2020 January transfer window. His form was red-hot in his loan spell, as he found the net eight times in 14 appearances to help the Magpies secure their top-flight status.

Willock was looking to leave Arsenal permanently in the summer of 2020. Signing the midfielder permanently seemed a no-brainer after his performances in his temporary spell with the club. However, since his permanent switch to the Magpies, Willock has struggled to get anywhere near the excellent form he had produced during his loan spell.

Michael Owen (Bought from Real Madrid for £22m)

The England striker joined Newcastle in the summer of 2005 for £22m after a short spell at Real Madrid. He joined the north east side in search of regular football and form in order to star for the Three Lions at World Cup 2006.

Owen made a superb start to the season at his new club, firing home seven goals in his first 11 games. However, disaster struck as the diminutive forward picked up a metatarsal injury. He recovered in time for the World Cup, but a knee injury kept him out of almost the whole of his second season with the club.

Owen returned to full fitness for his third season but was never the same again. He scored 13 goals in 33 games in that season while scoring ten times in his final season with the club, as the Magpies suffered relegation to the Championship.

Miguel Almiron (Bought from Atlanta United for £22m)

The Paraguayan international joined in January 2019 from Atlanta United for a fee of £22m, a record fee received for an MLS player. The mercurial attacking midfielder has enjoyed mixed fortunes since his switch to the north east.

He scored eight goals and produced two assists in 42 appearances in his first full season with the Magpies. The following season yielded five goals and three assists in 39 appearances. Almiron has struggled to find consistency during his time in the north east.

Callum Wilson (Bought from Bournemouth for £20m)

Wilson arrived in the summer of 2020 from Bournemouth after the Cherries suffered relegation to the Championship. The former Coventry forward had been one of Bournemouth’s standout players during their time in the Premier League.

Wilson scored 12 goals and produced five assists in 26 Premier League games in his debut campaign for Newcastle. Despite an injury-hit season in 2021/22, Wilson still scored eight goals in 16 appearances for the Magpies.

It would be fair to say that Wilson has been one of the more successful signings by the north east club in recent years.

Alan Shearer (Bought from Blackburn for £18m)

When Alan Shearer returned to his hometown club in 1996, the forward cost the Magpies a then-record transfer fee of £18m. The England international’s goals had helped Blackburn win the Premier League title, and he was desperate to help his boyhood club achieve the same feat.

Unfortunately, Shearer never managed to lift the Premier League trophy with Newcastle. However, he became a club legend, and his goals for the Magpies helped him become the Premier League’s record-ever goal scorer with 260 goals.