Speed is key once again for Newcastle in transfer market

Newcastle United head coach Eddie Howe drove home the importance of "speed being key" before the transfer window even opened last summer.

But it ended up proving the most turbulent window in the club's recent history after Newcastle missed out on a host of first-choice targets, lost Alexander Isak to Liverpool and made the bulk of signings in the final weeks of the summer.

This upcoming window is not about to be straightforward, either, but Howe stressed on Friday it "has to be different" as he reiterated the importance of the club "moving quickly".

"You will find the best players that are available on the market won't hang around for too long," he said.

"The speed at which the transfer market moves now is very quick. Teams are very efficient and we have to be there as one of those teams."

Howe will at least be able to fall back on the support of sporting director Ross Wilson and chief executive David Hopkinson, which he feels will enable Newcastle to make quicker and smarter decisions, after the club operated without an executive structure last summer.

With doubts surrounding the futures of a number of key players, including Anthony Gordon, Newcastle are going to have to be clever to rebuild effectively, particularly without Champions League football or the superior wage bills of those sides at the top of the Premier League.

"We had Champions League football and finances last year, and it was still very difficult to attract the players that we wanted, who we felt could really make a difference to the team," Howe said.

"I certainly don't think that challenge is going to be easier – it's going to be harder – but the lure of Champions League football was not all-defining for us, so there's a balance to it."