Newcastle Transfer News: Bafetimbi Gomis Deal Collapsed Due To Wage Demands
Chronicle. The 28-year-old was linked with a move to the Magpies for much of the summer and even held talks with manager Alan Pardew. However, despite a deal being all but done, the move instead dramatically collapsed. Gomis has since revealed the failure of the proposed transfer came down to wages, when Newcastle attempted to convince him to lower his wage demands. The former Saint-tienne man, who has scored 90 Ligue 1 goals since 2004, explained to French television:
I had a talk with Newcastle's coach and we found an agreement. "Then, there were talks with Lyon, there was a first offer - which was refused and then a second one, which was accepted. "Newcastle then came back to me and asked me to make an effort on wages - but I never asked anything as it was my club which wanted to transfer me, so the effort had to be made by Newcastle or Lyon."The collapse of the Gomis deal is just one example of the Magpies' frustrating period of inactivity in the transfer window. Pardew found himself trying to retain the players currently at his disposal rather than bringing in new recruits, with Papiss Cisse and Yohan Cabaye coming close to exits at various stages. Cisse was involved in a bitter dispute over the club's new sponsors, Wonga, while Cabaye was the subject of a £10 million bid from Arsenal. And though the North East club retained both player's services, their only signing of the summer was French striker Loic Remy on a season-loan from Queens Park Rangers.