Newcastle United managing director Lee Charnley has revealed that he does not expect the club to sign any players before the transfer window closes.
The Magpies, who are still searching for a new manager following Alan Pardew's departure earlier this month, were expected to make a move for new recruits with their season seemingly drifting away.
However, despite calls for a new striker to help fire the side back up the Premier League table, Charnley is not anticipating any movement.
"In all honesty, the January window is not one we ever envisaged being particularly active in," The Shields Gazette quotes the 36-year-old as saying. "That's partly because of the amount of business we did in the summer but also because January is a difficult market to operate in.
"There are very few options whereby a club can achieve the quality required and also get value. There is often a reason as to why a player might be available in January. We were forced to bring players in a couple of years ago in January because of where we were in the league and some of those transactions we brought forward from the following summer at significant cost.
"As a general principle, January's not an attractive window. Another important thing to note and something often not mentioned is Premier League teams are only allowed to name 25 players – we're currently at 25."
There is some good news for Toon supporters, though, with Charnley insisting that Newcastle do not have to sell players this January.
"As we sit here today I can't envisage any player we want to retain leaving," he added. "We make it very difficult for people to get our players. We put them on long-term contracts. We are not easy sellers, despite that perception."
Moussa Sissoko is among those who have been linked with a move away from St James' Park in recent weeks, with Arsenal said to be interested in the midfielder's services.
