Newcastle are now seriously underpaying £270k per-week trio at St. James' Park | OneFootball

In theory, the more money you invest into football the more likely your team will succeed in both the short and long-term future of the club. This has been true so far for Newcastle United. Since the celebrated departure of former owner Mike Ashley, the Magpies have excelled in the Premier League after intense investment from their new Saudi-led ownership.

The investment can be seen in the wage structure at St.James’ Park with players who were at the club during the Ashley era being on slim earnings compared to the new boys. Thanks to data from Spotrac, we can now know who the highest-earners at St. James’ Park are and which players won’t be getting a pay rise soon.

Who are the highest-paid Newcastle United players?

The Magpie's blockbuster signing of Sandro Tonali makes the little Italian the player who gets the healthiest pay packet at the end of the week. The 23-year-old takes home a very comfortable £10.9m a year in wages, £4m more than fellow teammates Bruno Guimarães and Alexander Isak. England shot-stopper Nick Pope is joint-bottom of the top 12 earners with the former Burnley goalkeeper taking home £60k per week.

Below, we've ranked all 12 of Newcastle's top earners into five categories, depending on whether wages match up with their contributions: Waste of money, Overpaid, What they deserve, Value for money and Seriously underpaid. Check out our picks...

Waste of money - Matt Targett

By all means, Targett is not a bad footballer at all but when you compare him to the other highest earners then you have to select him for this category. Newcastle found themselves in a relegation fight prior to Targett’s arrival to Tyneside and Eddie Howe knew they needed defensive reinforcements if they were to avoid the drop.

The defender joined from Aston Villa on loan before joining permanently for £15m and walked straight into Howe’s defence. The left-back played in all of Newcastle’s remaining fixtures except for a game against Aston Villa due to him not being eligible and helped the Magpies finish 11th in the Premier League.

The following season the former Southampton man started just six games for the Tyneside club which isn’t enough games for your third highest-paid player.

Overpaid - Harvey Barnes, Joe Willock

Barnes is in the same boat as Targett where his status questions whether he deserves to be on similar money to the players around him.

The dynamic winger has seen his weekly wage packet double over the past 12 months since his £39m switch to Newcastle from recently relegated Leicester City. The former West Bromwich Albion loanee is yet to prove if he is worth £4.1m a year and he will need to wait before he can win over the doubters due to the Englishman picking up a long-term injury early into his Newcastle career.

Barnes was the top goalscorer (13) in a lacklustre Leicester side last season - so if he can replicate the form he had last season for his new club he will undoubtedly shine in front of 52,000 spectators every week.

Meanwhile, Joe Willock's Newcastle career has mimicked Matt Targett's. He was a crucial player for them during an initial loan spell that saw him score eight goals in 14 appearances, but he's struggled to maintain that level of form and has been sidelined with a hamstring injury since the end of last season. He's still a decent squad player but it's hard to imagine him being a huge part of Newcastle's starting XI moving forward, despite being one of the club's bigger earners.

What they deserve - Joelinton, Miguel Almiron, Anthony Gordon

Joelinton has produced one of the best career comebacks in the iconic black and white shirt. The Brazilian signed in a then club-record deal worth £40m from Bundesliga outfit Hoffenheim as it was hoped he would help sort out Newcastle's dire situation in front of goal. In his debut season, the then-attacker scored on just two occasions which looked at the time that the 6 foot 1 man was going to go down as one of the Magpies' biggest flops.

Since being deployed in the middle of the park Joelinton looks like a completely different player. The Brazil international took home Newcastle's Player of the Season in 2022 - it showed his determination to succeed on and off the pitch which he can only be commended for.

Miguel Almiron's Newcastle career has panned out similarly. Having managed only nine goals in his first three and a half seasons on Tyneside, the Paraguayan netted eleven last term and has scored against PSG in the Champions League this season. He's a player the Magies can improve upon when the time is right but certainly serves a purpose.

Meanwhile, Anthony Gordon has proved a useful addition since being prized away from Everton midway through last season. The 22-year-old has really come into his own this term and cemented his place in the starting XI, so it's hard to argue with how much he's taking home.

Value for Money - Kieran Trippier, Sandro Tonali, Alexander Isak

A Premier League-proven England international for only £100k-per-week may be the best piece of business to date for the Magpies.

Despite being a right-back, Trippier has been an attacking catalyst for the North East club. Last season in the Premier League, only Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne (14.1) ranked higher than the Newcastle defender (11.8) for expected assists. Trippier’s attacking prowess partnered with his defensive capabilities named the Englishman as Newcastle United’s 2022/23 Player of the Season. The former Manchester City academy player has been a consistent member of Gareth Southgate’s England squad, and rightly so.

Despite claims that Tonali doesn't want to be in the north east, the Italian has shown glimpes of a player that can be one of best in his position in the Premier League. Former Toon defender Jose Enrique described the 23-year-old as a future ‘world-class’ player - if the Magpies continue to strengthen the players around Tonali he will reach his touted potential.

As for Isak, the towering striker has flourished under Howe and looks set to continue his development under the English manager after completing his first season in England. The partnership between Isak and Wilson propelled the Magpies into a Champions League spot last season as the duo finished the 2022/23 campaign with a combined 34 goal contributions.

Seriously underpaid - Bruno Guimarães, Sven Botman, Nick Pope

It is strange to say the joint-highest-paid player is underpaid but for the quality performances that Guimarães has been producing lately, it is understandable to make such a claim.

The Brazilian midfielder was one of the first high-profile signings made after the Saudi-led takeover and has so far looked incredible during his relatively short time on Tyneside. Newcastle agreed to a package worth £33.3m plus around £6.5m in add-ons with French giants Lyon for Guimarães, which now looks like a bargain.

Botman has been the Dutch rock the Newcastle faithful have fallen in love with. Partnered next to 31-year-old Swiss international Fabian Schär, the Magpies have one of the strongest and consistent centre-back pairings in the League.

Newcastle and Premier League champions Manchester City conceded the least amount of goals last season (33) and that has been helped by Botman's performances protecting Pope’s six-yard box. The 23-year-old is another great piece of business conducted by the club with the 6 foot 4 defender costing the Magpies just £35m from Ligue 1 outfit Lille.

Finally, Pope has been outstanding between the sticks at St.James' Park and his 14 clean sheets last season (second-most in the league) is only a testament to that. The £60,000-a-week contract needs to be bumped up soon with the English goalkeeper deserving to be one of the highest paid players in the Magpies' squad.