Newcastle have appointed Tomás Amaral as their new first-team recruitment director. The 35-year-old was officially announced this Tuesday, after leaving Spartak Moscow in 2024, and arrives as Newcastle continue rebuilding the recruitment structure under Ross Wilson.

Amaral's background

Amaral brings a broad scouting and recruitment CV. Newcastle said he arrives with experience in talent identification, market analysis and strategic squad planning from work in Portugal, Spain and Russia.

The club also highlighted his spell in a leadership role in talent scouting at Benfica, where he was part of a period that ended with the club's most recent Liga title in 2023. Earlier in his career, he worked as a scout for Granada, Eibar, Valladolid and Aves, and also spent time as a video analyst at SC Braga and Farense.

Wilson's recruitment structure

Newcastle said Amaral will lead the club's first-team scouting operations under the supervision of Ross Wilson. The club also said his remit includes strengthening relationships in key territories and expanding Newcastle's presence in the market.

That fits the scale of the job in front of him. Newcastle are 8th in the Premier League with 11 points from 8 matches, a 3-2-3 record and a -2 goal difference, so the recruitment department is being asked to support a side that has not yet found consistency.

Amaral told A Bola, in comments translated from Portuguese: "I fully share the ideas and ambitions of the people at the club and I am determined to do my part to contribute to Newcastle's success." He also said his first conversations with Wilson gave him a clear sense of the club's direction.

The appointment is a structural move rather than a quick fix, but Newcastle have at least added a recruiter with senior experience across several European markets. Their next three fixtures are away to Everton in the League Cup on 2026-10-29, home to Everton on 2026-11-02 and away to Fulham on 2026-11-07.

Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →