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Newcastle United boss Rafa Benitez says he is not expecting an early breakthrough in the January transfer window.

The Toon chief revealed the Magpies had already attempted to bring in a couple of new faces but had been unable to complete any deals just yet.

United have been linked with Ruben Loftus Cheek of Chelsea and Manchester City’s Fabian Delph but both Premier League clubs want more time to make their final decisions.

Yet Benitez did confirm he expects to see a signing in January - a month in which he will lose Mo Diame, Christian Atsu and Chancel Mbemba to the African Cup of Nations.

(Image: Newcastle United)

When asked about transfers, Benitez told the Chronicle: “I don’t see anything early because we tried a couple of things.

“Normally all of the teams are trying to do something so the agents wait a little bit and expect the best offer possible.

“I think we will see someone coming in, but I can’t say it will be on January 1.”

Benitez’s record in the transfer market at Newcastle has been impressive so far with successful signings such as Matt Ritchie, Dwight Gayle, Isaac Hayden, Ciaran Clark, Christian Atsu and DeAndre Yedlin.

Benitez also ensured there was plenty of cover in his squad with the additions of Achraf Lazaar, Daryl Murphy, Jesus Gamez, Matz Sels and Grant Hanley.

However, he will be looking for bigger contributions from his fringe players in 2017.