da bet7k： After the doom and gloom of life under Mike Ashley, the arrival of the PIF regime has brought with it renewed optimism and on-field improvement for Newcastle United, with the Magpies having enjoyed a remarkable transformation over the past 18 months or so.
da betsson： Having repeatedly found themselves fighting to stave off relegation in recent years, the northeast side could well be closing in on what would be a stunning top-four finish, having also reached the final of the Carabao Cup just a few months ago.
It would appear that the new ownership have got little wrong since taking over the club back in October 2021, with the club's recruitment having undoubtedly been particularly astute in that time, namely snapping up the likes of Kieran Trippier and Dan Burn last year for bargain fees of just £12m and £13m, respectively.
One notable blunder that PIF may well have made in recent times with regard to incomings, however, is the signing of striker Chris Wood, with the New Zealand international having hardly proved value for money following his £25m arrival from Burnley back in January 2022.
How much did Chris Wood cost Newcastle?
After early, ambitious talk following the change in ownership that Newcastle would be targeting the likes of Kylian Mbappe, the St James' Park outfit no doubt took a wise approach not to opt for the big marquee names, having been in a fight for survival heading into that winter window.
To go from rumours regarding such high-profile figures to then ending up with a more low-key signing such as Wood, however, did appear rather odd at the time, with talkSPORT pundit Gabby Agbonlahor describing it as a "strange, strange signing" after talk of "all these superstars".
Having scored just three league goals in the first half of the 2021/22 campaign at Turf Moor, the experienced marksman went on to score just twice more in the remainder of the season in his new home, despite starting 15 top-flight games.
That inability to make an impact was continued in the current campaign as the 31-year-old again netted only two league goals in 18 outings in the first half of the season, having looked a "bit lost", according to pundit Tam McManus.
With Eddie Howe and co already having Callum Wilson and Alexander Isak to call upon there appeared to be little need to keep Wood around, with the Magpies ultimately allowing the 70-cap dud to join Nottingham Forest on an initial loan deal in January.
That brought to an end a bizarre and rather costly 12 months for the centre-forward on Tyneside, with the 6 foot 3 man having cost roughly £4m in wages across the year in relation to his £80k-per-week salary, as well as his initial fee of £25m – totalling £29m.
That does appear money down the drain, in truth, such were the Auckland native's shortcomings, albeit with the only saving grace having been the fact that Forest have already forked out £15m to make the temporary deal permanent.
Even so, that transfer tale will be one that PIF will wish to forget in a hurry…