Newcastle United contingency transfer panel in place for Eddie Howe after Dan Ashworth decision

Manchester United have strengthened their interest the Magpies’ sporting director Dan Ashworth but Newcastle don’t have to panic about a replacement

Newcastle United’s new owners navigated their way through the early days of the club’s takeover without a sporting director so should Dan Ashworth depart for Old Trafford it won’t exactly be panic stations at St James’ Park.

In fact, Ashworth and Joe Kinnear aside, Newcastle have never previously operated with a sporting director or director of football as such. Therefore it will hardly be a shock to the system to not have a sporting director around and the departments that Ashworth set up are already up and running.

As reported on Chronicle Live on Saturday morning work has already started for the summer window after a barren January trading period. It is believed that there is a scouting a summit for Newcastle this very weekend ahead of the clash with AFC Bournemouth.

Eddie Howe

The gaffer himself knows when to step in and out of transfer negotiations if a player needs persuasion to join the Magpies. Howe was a key figure when Kieran Trippier arrived because of his past association with the right-back from his Burnley days.

That could be the case with a host of players Newcastle have been linked with going into the summer window including Philip Billing and Lloyd Kelly. Howe has a good idea of the players he wants this summer and is aware of a number of opportunities in various positions.

The head coach worked for seven months without Ashworth before his long-winded arrival from Brighton & Hove Albion. And he knows his way around the transfer market after having to wheel and deal as a raw young manager in his days in the lower leagues with the Cherries.

Steve Nickson

The head of recruitment at Newcastle United has been with the club since 2011 and has worked his way from the Academy to be one of the club’s main scouts. Nickson was praised by Staveley at the start of the takeover when the Ripon financier said: “We have an amazing head of recruitment in Steve Nickson, who has been with the club for a long time and has a really deep knowledge of the player markets. “So we were able to quickly put together a transfer committee.”

Nickson has enjoyed transfer success stories with Joelinton and Bruno Guimaraes due to his excellent links in South America. He was also instrumental with the additions of Ayoze Perez, Miguel Almiron and Allan Saint-Maximin. The former Blackburn scout has been despatched to complete a signing and get deals over the line during his time at St James’ Park and is seen as a safe pair of hands.

Andy Howe

The former Bournemouth scout is now Newcastle’s Head of First Team Technical Scouting and is responsible for providing the first-team coaching staff with data and information on potential new signings. The nephew of the head coach has been spotted in the background when new signings arrive and is regarded as an important part of the staff.