Summary Newcastle United's successful transfer market investment under new ownership has seen high-profile players join the squad, but not all moves have paid off. Jamal Lewis, once a promising signing for the Magpies, saw his market value plummet due to lack of playing time and went on loan to Watford for minutes. Lewis's disappointing performance at Newcastle has resulted in the club needing to sell him this summer to recoup some of the £15m they paid for him.

Newcastle United have enjoyed success in recent seasons in the transfer market, with the club investing heavily in the first-team squad with the club progressing rapidly in such a short space of time.

The Magpies were taken over by the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) in 2021, with their huge investment allowing the club to pull clear of any looming threat of relegation with Eddie Howe doing a tremendous job in transforming the club.

The takeover has allowed for high-profile players such as Bruno Guimaraes, Alexander Isak and Sven Botman to arrive at the club, with the trio playing a crucial role within Howe's impressive Magpies side.

However, the club have also invested money poorly in recent years, with Matt Targett being one example of a transfer that hasn't worked out as either party would've hoped for.

Despite Targett's unsuccessful move to St James' Park, there's another player whose big-money move to join the Magpies was a disaster, with both the player and the club needing to cut ties with each other.

Jamal Lewis' stats at Newcastle United

After an impressive campaign for Norwich City in the Premier League, Newcastle pounced on the Canaries' relegation by signing left-back Jamal Lewis for £15m – fending off competition from Liverpool for his signature.

There was real promise around Lewis' arrival at the club in 2020. However, after a solid first campaign at the club, the defender quickly dropped down the Magpies' pecking order.

During his first campaign at the club, he made 24 appearances in the Premier League, 20 of which came from the start with Lewis only featuring for six minutes in the league after the 1-1 draw against Wolves in February.

The 26-year-old only featured seven times over the course of the next two Premier League campaigns, before temporarily leaving the club during this season – dropping to the Championship for the first time since Norwich's promotion campaign in 2018/19.

2022/23

2 (9)

2021/22

5 (263)

2020/21

24 (1,834)

Jamal Lewis' market value in 2024

After his lack of minutes at St James' Park, the left-back completed a season-long loan to Watford in the Championship – a move that has allowed Lewis to gain valuable first-team minutes.

He's since made 28 appearances for the Hornets in the second-tier, with the Northern Ireland international finally starting to regain some form after a couple of seasons without regular football.

The lack of football on Tyneside has seen the defender's market value crash from £15m down to just £3m as per Transfermarkt – five times less than what the club paid for him just four years ago.

To put that into context, four players are valued higher in the whole Watford squad while it would rank him as 23rd for transfer valuation among the playing staff at St James', below that of the aforementioned Targett.

His move at the time may have been a promising one for both Newcastle and Lewis, but it's been nothing short of a disaster. With the defender having one-year left on his deal at St James', the summer could present the Magpies' last opportunity to sell Lewis and recoup some of the £15m they paid for him.