Newcastle United have enjoyed great success in the transfer market since PIF completed their takeover of the club and were able to invest in the squad over the last three windows.
The likes of Bruno Guimaraes, Alexander Isak, Kieran Trippier, and Sven Botman are just a few of the roaring successes to come from the owners' investment, which has led to the club sitting third in the Premier League as it stands.
However, maintaining a perfect transfer record is difficult for any club, no matter the finances involved, and the Magpies have had a few underwhelming signings in the PIF era.
How has Matt Targett performed for Newcastle?
One player who has not kicked on as some may have expected him to has been left-back Matt Targett after his £15m move to the club from Aston Villa last summer.
The English defender enjoyed an excellent spell on loan at St. James' Park in the second half of last season as he averaged a WhoScored rating of 6.99 across 16 appearances in the Premier League.
His form was rewarded with a permanent transfer and four-year contract with the Magpies but the ex-Southampton man's displays have been less than convincing since then.
Earlier this year, Eddie Howe described the defender as being "unfortunate" and a "victim" of the success of the team but, put simply, the left-back's performances when he has been given a chance to impress have left him with little chance of breaking into the team.
The 27-year-old has averaged a WhoScored rating of 6.40 across 14 outings in the top-flight for Newcastle this season, with Dan Burn – who has started 31 times – being preferred ahead of him from the start for the majority of the campaign.
Targett has gone from creating 1.2 chances per game in 2021/22 to 0.6 in the current term, along with his 4.2 tackles and interceptions dropping to 1.5.
How much is Matt Targett worth?
The full-back's disappointing showings in the Premier League in 2022/23 have led to his market value dropping significantly.
CIES Football Observatory value him at around €5m (£4m) with that indicating the Magpies have a depreciating asset on their hands, rather than one that is rising in value with the potential to make them a profit in the future.
They invested £15m to sign the defender from Aston Villa and his plummeting valuation coupled with a worrying lack of quality performances on the pitch suggest that they are unlikely to see much of that initial investment back if they decide to part ways with him in the near future.
Therefore, Newcastle dropped a clanger with their deal to sign the £100k-per-week enforcer, given the lack of return – from a footballing and financial perspective – on the signing so far. Indeed, the owners will want to focus on bringing in more players like Guimaraes and Isak, rather than repeating their apparent error with Targett.
