Newcastle needs to move fast in the transfer market

Newcastle boss Alan Pardew has said the club will only sign players at the right price

This summer seems to have been one of frustration for Newcastle fans.

All the Toon Army have had to show for the clubs transfer activity is rumour and speculation.

Many players have been linked with moves, but known have yet arrived on Tyneside.

Strikers

It seems that Magpies boss Alan Pardew’s top priority is a new striker. I have previously talked about Newcastle’s pursuit of French strikers Loic Remy and Bafetimbi Gomis. Both pursuits seem to have come to nothing.

The Magpies are believed to have pulled out of the deal for Gomis, after having a bid of around £7million turned down by Gomis’ club Lyon. The French club are looking for closer to £8million according to reports emanating from France.

A loan move for Remy could still be an option, but it could be complicated by the fact that West Ham are also now interested in taking the striker on a season-long loan deal.

Right price

Magpies boss Pardew claims that the club will only sign players at the right price. He told Sky Sports:

“I’m not concerned about any of them slipping away. I think that we are in the market still. We will pay what we think is the right price.”

Asked about the clubs interest on Gomis and Bent he replied: “They are all very much on the radar. We will pursue them until we get them.”

I would be concerned by the statement “I think that we are in the market still”. That suggests that as manager of the club he does not know what is going on with the clubs transfer activity. That would concern me if I was a Newcastle fan.

Director of football

Newcastle’s director of football Joe Kinnear is apparently in charge of recruiting new players for the club. I do not think he is doing his job properly, as of yet anyway. He is making big claims about getting the Magpies back into European competition, yet not finding the new signings that the club craves.

I do not think Joe Kinnear could direct a seagull to the coast. His appointment was a joke and the lack of transfer activity at the club proves it.

Players have left the Magpies, but nobody has arrived on Tyneside. Does that suggest that Kinnear is good at his job? For me is suggests that he is not. Pardew does not seem to know what to do at the moment. He is in a very precarious position.

If Newcastle makes a bad start to the new season it will be the boss that shoulders the blame for it, although Kinnear will also get some stick and quite rightly so.

Needed

Last season was not exactly great for the Toon Army. The team spent much of the season fighting relegation and the team badly underperformed, after the massive over-achievement in the prior season.

Newcastle are badly in need of reinforcements to their squad, even if only to give the fans a lift ahead of the new season. The team and squad need improving, or Newcastle could be in a very sticky situation next season.

Competition

One of the big problems that Newcastle have at the moment is that the competition seem to be working faster on the transfer front than they are. Fulham have already had a bid rejected for believed Magpies-target Darren Bent.

The Cottagers are current favourites to sign the England international. If Newcastle are to sign the likes of Bent then they need to pay the going rate. However, as Alan Pardew said he will only get players for the right price.

Meaning his hands are tied when it comes to paying out big transfer fees and giving players big wages. It does not seem like he is in control of his own destiny anymore. He is relying on Kinnear to bring in players and he seems to be struggling at the moment.

Hopeful

I really hope for the sake of the very loyal Newcastle fans that Kinnear, Pardew and chief scout Graham Carr manage to bring in some new players this summer, or the Magpies could face another struggle towards the bottom end of the Premier League table in the new season.

Will Newcastle make any big signings this summer?