Why mitchell's newcastle exit won't derail exciting summer and transfer plans

News of Paul Mitchell's imminent departure shocked the Newcastle United faithful on Tuesday afternoon as a feeling of Déjà vu swept over Tyneside. Less than one year after a summer of

turmoil unfolded within the boardrooms of St James' Park, there is natural fear that a similar fate may be lying in wait this time around. Thankfully, there are reasons to believe

Mitchell's exit will not affect United as they head into what could be a transformational summer off the pitch. Mainly due to the fact Newcastle's plans have been formulated well

in advance. After three successive windows of limited first-team spending, there has been a universal acceptance this summer would be different. Newcastle's pesky PSR shackles have been

loosened and while clubs like Aston Villa and Manchester United prepare to sell, Eddie Howe is making no secret of his desire to spend. A summit, staged in Northumberland back in February,

saw Newcastle's top brass meet in the countryside to thrash out recruitment plans and discuss stadium proposals. Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the Governor of United's majority owners - the

Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund - was in attendance after jetting in from Riyadh to hear first hand of the plans for the months ahead. Mitchell was involved in those meetings and has

had some input on transfer targets in recent months, with Howe having the final say on incoming talent. The sporting director was also on Tyneside over the weekend as Howe met with club

chiefs to iron out plans for the upcoming transfer window - that opens, initially, on June 1. Howe, speaking moments after the culmination of the Premier League season on Sunday, said:

"Speed is key for us & I have reiterated that many times internally. "Speed is key because we have to be dynamic, we have to be ready to conclude things very quickly, because

good players don’t hang around for long. "That’s always been my thought and my message on recruitment, because you can have a period when you think you have time - but then you look

around quickly and you see that time has elapsed and you missed opportunities you won’t get again." Mitchell is set to depart at the end of June, meaning he will still be in his post

for the first weeks of the upcoming trading period. As well as recruitment matters, the former Monaco and Southampton chief has played a major role in both the women's team and the

academy in recent months. The question that remains is: Do Newcastle find an immediate replacement for Mitchell? Reports of late have suggested the club may seek to bring in a Technical

Director, who would likely have less of a hands-on role regarding transfers and would likely set the strategic vision of the football club. Should Mitchell be replaced in his job role,

United would be parachuting a sporting director into St James' Park midway through a transfer window for the second campaign running - something the current Newcastle chief found tricky

almost 12 months ago. “My learning is that coming in to a pre-arranged strategy, is hard,” Mitchell told reporters last summer. “You ultimately then find yourself supporting, more than

driving elements.” Thankfully, any replacement will likely walk into rubber-stamped plans that have been formulated in the previous few months. As such, Newcastle supporters can likely

breathe a sigh of relief when it comes to those understandable fears of a derailed summer. _Here at ChronicleLive, we are dedicated to bringing you the best NEWCASTLE UNITED coverage and

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