Eddie Howe spoke about the difficulties Newcastle faced in the transfer market with English clubs hiking up prices of their players when Dan Ashworth came knocking.
Speaking ahead of the Crystal Palace game, Howe said: “We certainly found there’s no one there ready to do us a favour, the narrative regarding us has changed.
“If there’s anything, domestically, teams will put their price up if it’s Newcastle, but that’s the same around the world. That’s something we’re having to deal with and that’s why we walked away from a few deals because it’s important that we’re not seen as that club that will pay what’s asked. It has to be fair.”
You’ve definitely got to admire the club’s stance on this. They refuse to be taken for mugs and by not paying over the odds we can avoid catastrophic transfer failures or becoming like Everton and overspending ourselves into trouble.
Is The Premier League of Pettiness A Good Thing?
Absolutely.
No. It locks us out of transfer deals
Hopefully, this will also be used to fire up the squad even further. It’s now 100% clear that the other teams in the league are bricking it and that we have a target on our backs. We should do everything in our power to exploit this, and so far it seems like we are. We’ve gone toe-to-toe with Manchester City and Liverpool. We have shown that we don’t fear anyone, and nor should we.
When we are back up to full strength we can give anyone a game. The way Howe has got us playing, we shouldn’t fear anybody. Fitness has been our biggest opponent so far.
So, let the other teams sit behind their tears-coated screens of pettiness, let them think of all the excuses and jabs about our owners, and let them refuse to deal with us in the transfer market. All it means is that we are living rent-free in their heads, and when we come to town, we already have the edge!