Despite Alan Pardew's yearning for us to invest in more domestic talent this summer it seems Newcastle still hope to pick up a bargain or two on the continent. And, according to the Northern Echo this morning, we're set to table offers for overseas duo Pierre-Michel Lasogga (above) and Dimitri Payet (below) as the Club prepares to step its recruitment drive up a gear. Replenishing a depleted attack is a key priority for Pardew, Loic Remy, Shola Ameobi and Luuk de Jong will all depart this summer, and Hertha Berlin striker Lasogga, who spent the season on loan at Hamburg, emerged as a target over the weekend. The 22-year-old has certainly impressed at the Imtech Arena this term scoring 13 goals in 20 Bundesliga games for Die Rothosen despite them falling into the relegation play-offs, although the reported £10 million fee is likely to be a sticking point for us. A more realistic target would be Marseille winger Payet who we've scouted in the past and would be available for a relative steal at just £5m after struggling to make an impact at the Stade Veledrome following a £12m switch from Lille. It's understood the Magpies wanted to acquire the 27-year-old last summer but discouraged by his hefty price tag but have retained an interest in the France international, who has been deemed surplus to requirements by new L'OM boss Marcelo Bielsa. And with Bielsa being instructed that must trim the squad in order to generate his own transfer funds we could step in with a cut-price offer to take Payet, who still scored eight times in 37 matches last term, off their hands.
