The transfer window has only been open for little more than a week, but Newcastle United have already made a £15m signing in Matt Targett and new faces will follow in the coming months. That is for certain.
Yes, a permanent move for Targett was there to be done, after a successful loan spell last season, but Newcastle have already conducted more business than many of their Premier League rivals. In fact, Bournemouth, Brentford, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Everton, Fulham, Leicester City, Manchester United, Nottingham Forest, West Ham and Wolves are all yet to make a single signing.
Also, unlike other occasions in the recent past, there can be no doubt that Newcastle are trying to do further deals. As part-owner Mehrdad Ghodoussi put it to one particularly restless fan this week: 'Patience is a virtue'.
READ MORE: Sven Botman in 'relax mode' but transfer target has already given Newcastle owners encouragement
The reality is that 99% of supporters will recognise the challenges Newcastle have faced this summer, and they have not forgotten how far the club have come. It was only this time last year, after all, that Steve Bruce was doubtful that Newcastle would even be able to make Joe Willock's loan move permanent under the previous regime.
In the end, Newcastle managed to sign Willock, by 'breaking all the rules' to pay the fee in instalments, but the midfielder did not arrive until the final days of the window and proved the only signing the Magpies made in 2021 as a whole. An anonymous employee subsequently issued a club statement stating 'being run in a sustainable manner' does not come at the 'expense of being ambitious'.
Those words were written just days after Bruce was denied the chance to sign Leicester City midfielder Hamza Choudhury on loan on deadline day. If ever a statement summed up the Ashley era.
Newcastle are now fishing in a smaller pond, competing with AC Milan and Borussia Dortmund for their top targets, and that brings with it its own issues. It was tempting to think that the summer would not be quite as intense, given how Newcastle have more time to sign players and given how the club's Premier League safety is assured, but there have been similar issues once more.
Lille, for instance, are driving a hard bargain for Sven Botman, who still remains open to the prospect of a move to St James' Park, while, on the flipside, a fee has been agreed with Stade de Reims for Hugo Ekitike for some time now but talks are still ongoing with the striker's agent.
Newcastle have been persistent, resurrecting these moves after failed bids in January, because the hierarchy believe Botman and Ekitike are the sorts of individuals who can grow with the club, who could one day represent the Magpies in Europe. The list of such players Newcastle can target this summer, while also complying with the Premier League's profit and sustainability regulations, is not endless so it is easy to see why the black-and-whites have not walked away yet.
Eddie Howe would ideally like the bulk of the club's business done by the time the players return for pre-season training in less than two weeks' time but, by the same token, like in January, the Newcastle boss is wary of dipping 'below the line' for more attainable targets who would not necessarily improve the squad. Otherwise, Newcastle will end up in a worse position than they were at the end of last season, with an even more bloated squad that has not been enhanced.
The hierarchy, who repeatedly use the word 'process', feel similarly. The club's owners, after all, did not rush to appoint a head coach, sporting director or CEO and, likewise, with transfers, they are not going to panic buy or be held to ransom.
Newcastle already have alternatives in place, if required, having previously signed Dan Burn in January after moves for Botman and Sevilla centre-back Diego Carlos failed. Like the mid-season window, too, it is also worth bearing in mind that there are bound to be one or two surprises before the window shuts on September 1.
Bruno Guimaraes, for example, had not even been linked with Newcastle before it eventually leaked out that the Magpies were in advanced talks with Lyon in late January. A smart loan move for Targett was also completed in the final days of the month when, again, the Aston Villa defender was not a name in the headlines in the first few weeks of the window.
Another left field target may yet follow in their footsteps.
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