Newcastle director of football Joe Kinnear has blamed inflated fees and the demands of agents for the club’s lack of activity during the summer transfer window.
The St. James’ Park outfit fell out on a deal to land Olympique Lyonnais’ French striker Bafetimbi Gomis even after agreeing an £8m fee with the French Ligue 1 side.
The only notable arrival was Loic Remy, who joined on a season-long loan from Queens Park Rangers (QPR).
“It was very frustrating that we did not add at least another signing to the squad in the recent (transfer) window, but it was not for lack of effort,” Kinnear said.
Magpies fans have been angered by the club’s lack of activity during the summer and had pointed accusing fingers at the 66-year-old, who returned to the club in June after a short spell as a manager in the 2008/09 season.
In his programme notes for Saturday’s Premier League game against Hull City, Kinnear added: “I worked very hard on several targets and we made a number of bids for players, but for various reasons-some of which were outside the club’s control- we were unable to secure our targets.
“It was not an easy task to improve the quality of the current squad with the financial resources at our disposal, particularly in a window in which the value of players was grossly over-inflated and the demands of agents likewise.
“We will continue to operate in a financially responsible manner, buying only the right players for the right prices and not paying over the odds or making costly knee-jerk decisions.”
Newcastle’s only other business during the transfer window involved signing midfielder Olivier Kemen, 16, for their development squad.
