Newcastle United sporting director Paul Mitchell is looking to make a massive appointment at Newcastle United, in a potential boost for Eddie Howe.
Mitchell waking waves at Newcastle
A major change took place at St James’ Park during the summer, with Mitchell coming in from Monaco as arguably one of the most highly thought of sporting directors in the game. The Englishman came in at Newcastle as Dan Ashworth’s replacement, as the club looked to fill the void left by a significant figure at St James’ Park, as he moved on to Manchester United instead.
Since then, Mitchell has certainly made waves with the Magpies, with his strained relationship with Eddie Howe proving to be a big talking, and his bullish comments about Newcastle’s approach to transfers standing out: “Is it fit for purpose? Not last winter gone, the winter before that.
“Is it fit for purpose in the modern game? Because other clubs that have adopted a different approach over time, with more intelligence, more data-informed than we are, actually prospered in this window. That’s where we have to grow to be now.”
It is very clear that the 43-year-old is looking to make his presence felt at Newcastle, and now another update has emerged to further suggest that that is the case.
Mitchell eyeing big appointment at Newcastle
According to The Athletic, Mitchell wants to appoint a new senior recruitment expert at Newcastle, as he looks to turn the club into an “elite” operation in all facets on and off the pitch to close the gap on the biggest teams in the country. The report says that the former Monaco transfer guru has “held extensive meetings with department heads”, with interviews already held regarding the new appointment and data use to be a big focus in the new scouting set up.
This is an impressive update when it comes to the job Mitchell is doing, even though he has arguably become a divisive figure already because of the nature of his relationship with Howe, with some supporters naturally defensive of the manager. Newcastle must have everyone pulling in the same direction, whether it be the manager, sporting director or anyone to do with the recruitment team, and it looks as though he is doing his best to make that happen.
The success of Manchester City and Liverpool over the past decade or so has been partly down to both clubs being such well-oiled machines, with Michael Edwards an almost legendary sporting director at Anfield, masterminding the signings of Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane, among others, and copying the Moneyball approach made famous in baseball.
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If Newcastle can make a similarly revolutionary appointment, acquiring the services of a master in the role, it could have a huge impact on their transfer business. Ensuring that Howe has a good rapport with the individual is also essential, however, and Mitchell must be aware of that.
