Tottenham insider unpacks Paul Mitchell's transfer success and failures with Newcastle verdict

After standing firm to get the deal they wanted regarding Dan Ashworth's departure to Manchester United, Newcastle United moved swiftly to confirm the appointment of Paul Mitchell as the club's new sporting director. Mitchell arrives with a strong reputation across the game, and was even a target for Man Utd at one stage having most recently worked as a sporting director at AS Monaco following a spell as technical director at Red Bull's global football division.

For football fans in this country, Mitchell will be best known for his time spent at Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur. The 42-year-old was involved in Tottenham's transfer strategy when Kieran Trippier, Dele Alli, Son Heung-min and Toby Alderweireld were brought to north London, but clashed with chairman Daniel Levy and like Ashworth, found himself on gardening leave before eventually leaving the club.

So, what can we learn from his time at Spurs and how was Mitchell viewed by the fans in North London? We spoke to Alasdair Gold from our sister title football.london, to get the lowdown on Newcastle's new man.

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Ali Gold verdict on Mitchell

"Paul Mitchell's stay at Tottenham was a short and initially sweet one before it all went rather sour. Mauricio Pochettino had a close relationship with the head of recruitment at Southampton, which is why he was poached as a 33-year-old a couple of months after the Argentine's arrival in 2014.

"He would last less than two years though with transfer successes in Son Heung-min eventually and Toby Alderweireld, as well as Dele Alli, although the latter was pushed by former manager David Pleat, while Victor Wanyama was a good signing until injuries took hold of his time at Spurs.

"There were also plenty of flops like Vincent Janssen, Clinton Njie and Georges Kevin-Nkoudou, although reports when Mitchell resigned in August 106 suggested that he struggled to work with Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy and that a failed move for Michy Batshuayi was the straw that broke the camel's back.

"Mitchell then served six months of a 16-month notice period before being placed on gardening leave. His time at Spurs is often looked back on fondly as it coincided with Pochettino's prime years, but the transfer record on reflection was mixed. He may well suggest that is skewed because he was unable to sign the players he wanted."