Stephen Warnock has claimed that the ‘top-quality’ trio of Kieran Trippier, Antony Martial and Jesse Lingard won’t be signing ‘three or four-year’ deals at Newcastle, as he told the Football Show on Sky Sports.
The former left-back was trying to make the point that the relegation-threatened outfit will be a ‘hard sell’ during the January transfer window.
Ever since Newcastle were freed from the hands of Mike Ashley, their new Saudi-led ownership has brought some hope back to the club.
But, unfortunately, that mood has been dampened pretty quickly because of the performances out on the pitch.
Despite those constant losses and abject defensive displays, it hasn’t stopped several names from being mooted to make a move to St James’ Park next month.
Warnock touched upon three possible names that could arrive and the problems Newcastle and Eddie Howe will face.
“It’s going to be a very hard sell for Newcastle,” said Warnock. “That’s the only thing, the loan market. It’s where they are at.
“They wouldn’t be able to sign many top-quality players. When you talk about top-quality players, you talk about Trippier. If you were Trippier, you wouldn’t come to Newcastle and sign a three-year deal.
“If you are Antony Martial, you wouldn’t be signing a three or four-year deal. Jesse Lingard, you wouldn’t be doing the same.
“Okay, maybe six months, with a view to how we do and if we can win some games. But they need about seven or eight players. This window is going to be huge for them.”
The biggest month of Newcastle’s short-to-medium term future is around the corner and they can’t afford to get it wrong.
The January transfer window has proven to be a saving grace and a disaster for teams across the pond before.
This is Newcastle’s lifeline to stay in England’s top division because with this current crop they don’t have any hope.
It’s obvious they will have to throw money at it, but given their situation, they won’t be signing many high-profile names on a permanent basis, which then makes the loan market paramount for them.
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