Eddie Howe has warned that Financial Fair Play will have an impact on Newcastle United for ‘a number of years’.
There was an expectation that the arrival of Saudi-backed owners would result in lavish investment in the playing squad.
But while £94million was spent in January on five new players and a further £55m this summer, the club are now operating within a restricted budget.
Indeed, a £40m offer for James Maddison this week - rejected by Leicester - is said to be the limit of their scope for the remainder of this window.
Howe had said in May that funds would be limited because of FFP and stressed the need for ‘evolution not revolution’.
And, asked on the eve of the new season what this summer’s business told us about the current financial position of the club, Howe said: ‘Hopefully it tells you that what I was trying to tell you at the back end of last season was the truth.
‘Financial Fair Play impacts us and will continue to impact us, I think, for a number of years. We haven't got the free rein, the free hand, that maybe has been perceived within the media, that we can go and sign who we want and pay extortionate fees and wages.
‘We're not in that position and I don't think we will be for some period of time. We're having to be creative and smart and try and make the right additions within the financial constraints that we have.’
Newcastle’s pursuit of Maddison has now gone cold, while another target, Burnley’s Maxwel Cornet, is set for West Ham.
Howe said: ‘Nothing’s progressed any further. The situation has remained the same since we made our last signing. We’re working hard to try and add to the group. We are active in the market, and we’ll wait and see if we can add players before the window shuts.’
He added: ‘There’s no frustration from me aimed at the club, it’s the circumstances around it where we’ve missed out on a couple of players because they wanted to go elsewhere. That’s the delicate thing. There’s a whole host of things that have to drop for you. It’s an ever-moving thing, it’s always changing. I’m very confident we can do what we need to make the squad as strong as possible.’