In some ways you really have to commend what Newcastle have achieved in the transfer market since 2009. They've set their own rules and their own valuations, and have gone after targets with a logical approach that means they have rarely paid over the odds on players who have turned out to be misfires. Yes, there have been high-profile mistakes like Sylvain Marveaux, Papiss Cisse (to a certain extent anyway) and Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa, but the real issue in all three cases is not the quality of the player or the price paid, but the manager attempting to get the best out of them. After a summer of heady spending, something looks like it might have changed. There was already talk that the policy from now on would be the same as an over=packed nightclub - one in, one out - before the transfer window slammed shut with two notable outs and no helpful ins in the last couple of hours - but now it looks like not only will Alan Pardew's acquisitions be dependant on freeing up squad space, it will also depend on fees being freed up by outgoing players. The long and short of it is that if Newcastle want to sign the centre-half they so desperately and obviously need, they will have to reinvest the £4m or so that is rumoured to be coming in when Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa leaves permanently for Roma. There are any number of issues with the sentence alone, but the main issue for the future of Newcastle's back-line is that whoever replaces the French international who is currently impressing at Champions League side Roma (and yet is rendered unplayable by Alan Pardew's lack of understanding) will have to cost less than £4m. Inevitably, that has lead to suggestions that James Tomkins will be first on the list of underwhelming options to fill in while Jamaal Lascelles matures (or doesn't depending on who is in charge of his development). He would probably cost all of the £4m, or close to it at least, and would be only a slight improvement on the likes of Steven Taylor or Mike Williamson for that money. That surely isn't the way forward? The other option would be to bring in someone like Nastasic on loan from Man City, as was rumoured to have been Pardew's intention in August, before the player decided to stay and fight for his place, but that would probably involve a loan fee, and would ultimately mean Newcastle would need to sign another centre-back in the summer anyway. Considering the importance of the position, Newcastle cannot afford to skimp - just as they cannot on their hunt for another striker - and the unfortunate reality is that paying too little will yield inferior talents. You get what you pay for, after all, and Newcastle need to learn that investments should be classed as such, rather than identifying affordable options over their suitability to the first team. Yes, the sell-on factor is important, but so too is the small matter of actually stopping balls going into the net. I know which I prefer.
