Newcastle United are about to enter their fourth transfer window since the new ownership took control, and it promises to be a big one. After all, they now boast a place in the Champions League after finishing 4th in the Premier League.

Their rise has been rapid, with some massive signings that transformed the team under Eddie Howe. They haven't signed every player they hoped for, however, and Football FanCast has taken a look back on some of their near-misses over the last 18 months.

Here's what could have been…

8 Cody Gakpo

Chronicle Live claims Newcastle were big, big fans of Gakpo before his move to Liverpool. They'd actually been watching him pre-takeover and continued right the way through the World Cup.

It always looked likely that Gakpo would move on from PSV Eindhoven in January, and Newcastle were a common name linked. Anfield would be his ultimate destination, however.

7 Mykhailo Mudryk

Just about every Premier League club wanted Mudryk – or at least, it felt that way to start the year. Newcastle were among those, says The Athletic, but they couldn't justify his ultimate fee as Chelsea swooped in.

6 Khvicha Kvaratskhelia

Kvaratskhelia arrived at Napoli a year ago and absolutely stormed it in Serie A, leading his side to their first title in decades. Naturally, Newcastle were amongst the clubs hoping to sign the now-superstar – according to The Times. All reports suggest he's staying put after signing an extended deal, though.

5 Enzo Fernández

Enzo was one of the biggest stories coming out of the World Cup, with Benfica under pressure to sell the player they'd signed just a few months prior. A Bola in Portugal believed Newcastle wanted him, too, and that they could trigger his release clause. As it turned out, Chelsea would be the ones to do that.

4 Jude Bellingham

Bellingham was quite possibly the most in-demand player on the planet ahead of this summer. Sport Bild claimed that the Magpies were hoping to get involved and make the midfielder a marquee signing. He does feel like the perfect player to build around given his age and quality.

Instead, he has now signed for Real Madrid, but perhaps a Premier League move beckons in the future.

3 Neymar

Okay, so maybe it's time to take these ones with a pinch of salt. Still, rumours swirled this season that Paris Saint-Germain wanted to sell Neymar. Few clubs could actually afford the Brazilian – but Newcastle are one of them.

90min made the link, and while Neymar is ultimately still with PSG, you can expect to hear this one again. Speculation is louder than ever that the playmaker will depart this summer. Maybe Champions League football in the north-east appeals?

2 Kylian Mbappé

There was a lot of drama around Mbappé ahead of the World Cup, with suggestions in France that he wanted out of PSG. Much like Neymar, the number of clubs that could afford the superstar is very small. Newcastle would again be up there, though.

And journalist Ben Jacobs claimed they were a potential destination at the time. Now, again as with Neymar, nothing ultimately happened. But the striker doesn't seem too happy and Newcastle may just have a chance to try again someday soon.

1 Lionel Messi

One PSG star who was on the move was Lionel Messi – he's joined Inter Miami. But there was talk in Spain this year that Newcastle were planning to make a monster offer to arguably the greatest player of all time.

That's what Sport claimed. Barcelona also wanted Messi back but Newcastle were seen as a genuine threat. As it is, Messi will leave elite European football behind and take his talents to South Beach.