With the transfer window slammed solidly shut until January, we can finally see where we stand for the coming season.

 One of the key concerns was Mike Ashley, the man who had never turned a loss in a transfer window, and whether we'd sell the key performers from last season and replace them with former Premier League flops. Hughton quickly moved to ease concerns, and an odd statement released by the board, despite promising no "new capital outlay" (the meaning of which was discussed time after time), ensured us that the plan was to sign young players, with a future and who wanted to play for the club. So let us start at the beginning:

 James Perch - The 24 year old Nottingham Forest defender was the first signing of the season, made at an undisclosed fee believed to be around about £1.5m. This was a low profile signing, but slightly alleviated fears that Ashley wouldn't spend, even if the fee was low. A player more known for his versatility than his ability, it is suspected that Perch is no more than a stop gap to fill in for Danny Simpson while the ex-Manchester United player's ankle recovers from the off season surgery. Question marks still remain over Simpson's ability however, and if neither he nor Perch make the step up to the Premiership, we could be without a solid right back for some time.

 Dan Gosling - This was a signing which it seems unlikely that Hughton had even considered when the window opened in July, but when Gosling took Everton to court over some strange contract negotiations which he had been part of, Newcastle acted quickly to offer the promising 20 year old a new club. The midfielder will be absent until January with a cruciate ligament injury, a serious injury which many players never fully recover from, but for a player of Gosling's ability on a free the reward surely outweighs the risk.

Sol Campbell - Campbell was a different case according to Hughton. He obviously doesn't match the young developing players plan written in the statement, and at 35 his best days are well behind him. However, with only three experienced centre backs, one of which had never before played in the Premiership and another who was out for a good few months, it was clear we needed cover in this area, and on a free it seemed a decent deal. Campbell arrived at training visibly out of shape, despite him denying that he was fat, and needs a special training plan to get him ready to play for the first team, but most hope he'll bring some much needed Premiership experience to a defensive line up severely lacking in years. The worry was that it was the second free transfer, and Ashley had, up to this point, only spent £1.5m in the window. If the trend continued, we'd be in a bad position come the end of the season

 Cheick Tiote -  A name not necessarily immediately familiar with everyone, but at 24 he brings quite a bit of experience with him. Having won the Dutch League with Steve McClaren's "how-you-say underdogs" FC Twente, he went on to play for the Ivory Coast in the World Cup, where he showed his tough tackling by almost breaking Elano's leg. A defensive midfielder may not have been the top priority, but the thought of Alan Smith holding that role for a whole season certainly had me worried. He also came at a reported fee of £3.5m, which meant Ashley had once again dusted off the cheque book and signed a player.

 Hatem Ben Arfa - The most high profile signing of the club's summer came in the form of a temperamental French left winger. Hoping to follow in the footsteps of Ginola and Robert (and N'Zogbia?) the talented youngster's transfer saga was of the kind only Newcastle could manage. He fell out with his team mates and manager at Marseille, and then asked to move to Newcastle. Just as a deal appeared to be agreed, the Marseille chairman moved the goalposts, leaving Ben Arfa stuck at the club. Understandably annoyed, he left Marseille of his own accord and flew to Newcastle, hoping to talk to the club. Newcastle were having none of it, clearly scared a tapping up scandal would emerge, so he flew back to his club and vowed never to play for them again. The deal finally went through, a year long loan for an initial £2m, with a future signing fee should he impress.

Mike Ashley spent a total of £7m in transfer fees, surely with his track record and his not capital outlay statement someone would have to leave. But other than Butt retiring and Pancrate's contract expiring (he was never good enough in the Championship) the squad remained as it was, suitably strengthened for the coming season.

Some fans had hoped to see a striker and/or a left back in for the season, and, although we have Ben Arfa to play the second striker role, this hope was never fulfilled. However, with 6 strikers and Kadar to cover left back, we'll hopefully be secure in all but the worst injury crisis, and the coming season certainly looks to be more enjoyable than most had feared.

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