Newcastle United are looking at a 'huge list' of alternative transfer targets but Eddie Howe has warned there is no 'guarantee' that the Magpies will make a breakthrough in the final 10 days of the window.
Newcastle have already brought in Kieran Trippier and Chris Wood, but the pair may end up being the most straightforward signings the club make this month.
Atletico Madrid, after all, were willing to respect Trippier's wishes to return to the north of England while Burnley had no choice but to accept Newcastle's £25m bid after the black-and-whites triggered the release clause in the striker's contract.
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Making a third signing has proved more difficult this week and Newcastle have, so far, been frustrated in their efforts to secure Sevilla defender Diego Carlos and Manchester United midfielder Jesse Lingard.
Newcastle still remain hopeful of landing those top targets before February 1, but the Magpies are also looking at other options at the same time.
"We're looking at all alternative targets," Howe told reporters on Zoom. "Please don't think I'm sat there with a list of one player and that's the only player that we would go for.
"We're looking at a huge list of names but even when the list is big, it still doesn't mean that you're guaranteed to get one of those players over the line because you've got to remember this is, in my opinion, the best league in the world.
"The number of players that can come in and make your team better makes it a very small pond that we're fishing in with the availability issues that we'll have in this window compared to the summer. I think that's what people have to understand."
Clubs are particularly keen to keep hold of their best players in the mid-season window because there is so little time to replace them.
Newcastle's newfound wealth has led to some clubs asking for inflated transfer fees while COVID has also proved an additional complication as clubs are wary of letting fringe players go in case an outbreak of the virus leaves them thin on the ground.
Regardless, Howe has vowed that Newcastle will continue their efforts to strengthen the squad right up until the 'last day' - without resorting to panic buys.
"I don’t think it’s so much finances because, in some cases, you can bid whatever you want and the player isn’t for sale," he said. "Sometimes, money isn’t the issue here.
"Talk about panic is an absolutely valid question in the sense that sometimes, if you dip below the line in terms of a player who you think can improve the group and then end up with someone that hasn’t, you’re in a worse position than when you started. That’s the crucial thing for us to remember at all times."
Of course, it is easy to forget that Newcastle will need to create space in their 25-man squad to accommodate any new arrivals but, so far, the Magpies have yet to receive any offers for any of their players.
It remains to be seen if any late loan enquiries are made for those individuals who have not played under Howe, such as goalkeepers Freddie Woodman and Mark Gillespie, or those players who have barely featured, like Jeff Hendrick and Dwight Gayle.
Howe is well-aware that he is going to have to continue to count on the majority of this group to get 19th-placed Newcastle out of trouble.
It will be the same players who failed to beat Watford last time out who will be tasked with getting a result at Leeds and, while Howe understands supporters' concerns about the window, the Newcastle boss knows that his side needs their support at Elland Road on Saturday.
"I understand and share their frustration because all they ultimately want to see is a successful team," he added. "I've got no issue with at all.
"The only thing I will ever ask of the Newcastle supporters is to back the team in competition when we're playing. Back them from the first whistle to the last whistle, which they have done in every game since I've been here.
"The reaction of the crowd has been a huge positive and we all want the same thing. I think that's the key thing as well. I want what they want and the players inside the dressing room want the same thing as well so it's that united effort that's going to be the key thing for us and as long as we can keep that unity, I think we'll be fine.
"The transfer window and everything and the hype that's created around it sometimes is bigger than the actual reality. I think we just need to keep it in perspective."
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