Joe Kinnear admits Newcastle are likely to miss out on John Arne Riise after the former Liverpool man returned to Roma’s starting XI.
Riise had only made a handful of starts for the Italian giants, prompting Kinnear to reveal that he planned a January loan swoop for the Norweigan.
However, the Newcastle boss’ enquiry appears to have helped Riise return to Roma’s starting line-up, making it all the more difficult for Kinnear to lure the left back to St James’ Park.
"John's name came up specifically because he's not been in their team and he's a good player,” he told The Journal.
“We made contact with their club and asked 'Is there any chance of a loan?' and that's as far as it's got at the moment.
"And what happened after I'd made the call? He's back in the team and playing well, which changes things. When you make the call you're always aware that things can change.”
Kinnear does have other irons in the fire though, plus he expects to be boosted by the return of Mark Viduka against Middlesbrough this weekend.
"He's not far off, I can tell you. Obviously he hasn't had games but you might find that he's on the bench on Saturday."