“We’re going to need to look at British players quickly because we’re starting to get filled up with perhaps too many foreign players,” says Alan Pardew.
Newcastle United manager has for the first time admitted that the club has too many foreign imports, and during the transfer window wants to concentrate solely on British talent.
Pardew goes on to say that working with director of football Joe Kinnear is not a problem for him, but owner Mike Ashley does not understand the logic of football.
When former Wimbledon manager Joe Kinnear arrived in June it was assumed that he was there to take over from Pardew, but now four months later the Toon boss has revealed that the pair has a good working relationship.
Over recent years it has seemed as though all of the players coming to Newcastle were French including internationals Yohan Cabaye, Mathieu Debuchy and Loic Remy.
Pardew admitted today: “One issue is that we’re going to need to look at British players quickly because we’re starting to get filled up with perhaps too many foreign players. I think we need to strengthen the team and maybe in January as well.
“I didn’t know Joe at all. So far, you can only take someone as you find them and so far he’s been supportive. He’s asked me what I want, I’ve told him what I want and it’s his job to try and get it out of Mike as far as I’m concerned.
“His role really and truly is to be Mike’s confidante in terms of what is the manager wanting, what does he need, what can I deliver for him. He’s not involved at the training ground with any tactics or anything like that.
“He hasn’t even offered me his opinion in any kind of manner except to ask mine so on that side of it, I’m comfortable with that and hopefully he can get the message to Mike on the one or two issues we need to address.”
Top of Pardews January shopping list is a new striker, and has admitted that he would like to make QPR on-loan man Loic Remy a permanent fixture at St James Park.
He added: “Loic is a great signing. He’s on loan; he’s a player who has done terrific for us and a player that we’ll perhaps look at going forward to bring to the club on a permanent basis. There is (something in place for him) but it’s complicated.”
When talking about the clubs owner Mike Ashley Pardew said: “He can’t understand the logic sometimes of how football works and it confuses him and I think it upsets him and sometimes when he’s upset I think he does some things that are not brilliant for the football club. That’s just Mike, but I can think of a lot of owners who are less good than Mike.
“I think Mike has played something like £200 million-plus for this football club and I don’t really think he wants to put any more in terms of his own financial money, so therefore it has to do what we say in the trade as wipe its nose. We have to use the funds we have. We’re not overloaded with funds and I think that gets lost a little bit.”
