Maybe Alan Pardew is reflecting on the fact he made it clear that he desperately wanted the likes of Douglas and Debuchy in the summer, only to be undermined by his bosses.
Needless to say we are desperate for at least one more quality midfield player but maybe the story starts to fall down when it says Newcastle would look to start the bidding at £5m.
These stories will keep on coming every transfer window and only two people can change that. One is a billionaire businessmen who is renowned for offering what he thinks a business/footballer is worth and not negotiating beyond that, the other is Demba Ba.
Reports claim that Ba is currently on £40,000 a week and that Newcastle United are willing to go up to £50,000 to settle the contract clause currently allowing him to leave for around £7m if he chooses.
The player was on the verge of signing for Fiorentina in the summer transfer window but the appointment of his father as Breda’s head coach apparently tipped the balance for him to stay a bit longer.
One positive would be that Gabon have not qualified for the upcoming African Cup Of Nations, though the downside may be that Jonas won’t fancy having to share the dressing room with another superhero (see photo).