AFTER a couple of years in which his future has been the subject of seemingly non-stop conjecture, might this be the summer when Allan Saint-Maximin finally leaves Newcastle United? Increasingly, it is starting to look that way.

Not for the first time, the Frenchman took to social media this week to vent his frustration after stories continued to emerge linking him with a possible switch to Saudi Arabia. “People can keep talking when they know nothing,” said Saint-Maximin. “I just keep working.”

The reality, however, is that the talking is also going on inside the corridors of power at St James’ Park, with Newcastle’s recruitment team having accepted the need to start balancing the books if there are to be further additions this summer.

A deal for Harvey Barnes is gathering pace, with the Leicester City midfielder edging closer to a move that would see Newcastle pay an initial fee of around £35m to secure his services, with a further £5m of potential add-ons also being discussed. The Magpies have already shelled out around €70m to sign Sandro Tonali this summer, with the Italian having become the club’s highest-paid player, and if Barnes arrives too, they will be extremely close to hitting the limit of additional investment that is permitted under the Premier League’s Financial Fair Play rules.

That would be fine if Newcastle’s squad-building was complete, but even if Barnes follows Tonali through the entrance door, Eddie Howe remains keen to made further additions before the end of next month.

A new full-back remains a priority – ideally one that could play on either flank – and along with the rest of the Magpies’ recruitment team, Howe would ideally also like to recruit an additional forward player to provide extra cover and competition in the final third.

If those players arrive, something is going to have to give. Newcastle are beginning to rebuild their commercial activities and raise their revenue streams – the Sela sponsorship deal represented a major increase from previous agreements and this month’s involvement in the Premier League Summer Series promises to be a lucrative venture – but the reality is that a decade of underinvestment under Mike Ashley means they are starting from an extremely low base. Champions League qualification clearly helps, but it will be at least two or three years before the Magpies really start to see the benefit of their additional revenue when it comes to the limits imposed by FFP.

For now, the reality is that if they want to make first-team signings beyond a deal for Barnes, or an equivalent outlay on an alternative player, someone will have to leave. And at that moment, that someone looks like being Saint-Maximin.

The Northern Echo: Newcastle United winger Allan Saint-MaximinNewcastle United winger Allan Saint-Maximin (Image: PA)

On his day, the Frenchman is unquestionably one of the most talented players in the Premier League. Think back to the match at Burnley towards the end of the 2020-21 season under Steve Bruce when Saint-Maximin came off the bench to single-handedly turn a crucial relegation battle in Newcastle’s favour.

The game against Leeds in lockdown when Saint-Maximin again left the bench and was pretty much unplayable for half-an-hour is another match that stands out, and even last season, the winger was producing the occasional memorable moment, most notably when he fired in a sensational last-gasp equaliser at Wolves towards the start of the campaign.

The reality, though, is that Saint-Maximin’s best moments in a Newcastle shirt have been exactly that – brief flashes that provided a thrilling reminder of his qualities, or perhaps a run of two or three matches in which he threatened to take the Premier League by storm.

The rest of his time on Tyneside has either been injury-hit or contained spells when Saint-Maximin’s star has faded and he has struggled to consistently be the player he occasionally threatens to become.

Last season, he made 12 Premier League starts and 13 substitute appearances, contributing a goal and four assists. Over the course of the campaign, he ranked 128th in the top-flight for chances created.

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Take his Premier League career as a whole, and he has played 111 matches, scoring 12 goals and claiming 19 assists. Interestingly, during his time in Ligue 1 with St Etienne, Monaco, Bastia and Nice, he also made 111 league appearances, scoring 12 goals and delivering 17 assists. That suggests his current level of impact is pretty much what to expect from him for the remainder of his career.

Given that the defensive side of his game will always be a question mark against him, an important factor assuming Howe continues to develop a high-intensity, high-pressing style in which the defensive work of Newcastle’s forward players is a key part of the overall game plan, are Saint-Maximin’s figures in the final third of the field sufficient to earn him an extended run in the starting side?

If he is up against Alexander Isak, Miguel Almiron, Anthony Gordon, Jacob Murphy and potentially Harvey Barnes, then I would argue probably not. And if that is the case, then cashing in to the tune of £40m or so probably makes sense.

It remains to be seen whether the interest from Saudi Arabia solidifies into a permanent offer. If it does, there will no doubt be cries of foul play given Newcastle’s need for income and the club’s links to the Saudi PIF. The reality, however, is that Saint-Maximin’s value on the open market must be close to £40m, and if a Saudi club were to offer that, along with the kind of eye-watering wages that are now commonplace in the Middle Eastern state, both Newcastle and the player himself would be foolish to turn it down.

Even the biggest clubs in the world accept that player trading has to be part of their model somewhere down the line; for all his undoubted talent, Saint-Maximin feels like the right player for Newcastle to let go.