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In a tumultuous week in the relegation slug-a-thon, two events stuck out.

The day after Jermain Defoe hits a hat-trick at Swansea in what Sam Allardyce called an “enormous” win, Florian Thauvin’s unhappy time on Tyneside – booed at Watford, unable to get a game in a struggling Newcastle team – looks to be coming to an end.

Sunderland’s recruitment has long been the subject of hang-wringing anxiety on Wearside and beyond. The regard in which Lee Congerton, the man charged with modernising and improving the Black Cats’ approach in this area, is held is illustrated by the ease with which Sam Allardyce wrestled full control of transfers away from him. Congerton was not a huge success.

Yet Defoe has been a success. A veteran striker with no sell-on, an expensive contract and in search of a long-term contract? Newcastle would never sign a player like Defoe – and neither, presumably, would the likes of Liverpool, who employ a vaguely similar philosophy.

Defoe’s three goals at Swansea were his latest match-turning intervention. It’s not been completely sweetness and light at the Stadium of Light for him, but which club in the relegation mix wouldn’t crave a player like him?

It’s a complicated business, recruitment. It’s also an imprecise science, which is why judging Graham Carr either on the success of Yohan Cabaye or the failure of Florian Thauvin makes little sense.

Let’s nail a few myths here: Carr, while listened to on transfers, was brought in to move United away from the days when Newcastle’s approach to transfers was to bring in established players with miles on the clock and a reputation.

Sometimes that worked but Ashley, saddled with a lot of long contracts and aware of United’s reputation as a club more-than-willing to cough up for one last pay day, requested something different. Carr, Derek Llambias and Lee Charnley have delivered that and while you can’t make a case for the club being stronger on-the-field, it’d be interesting to see how many would go back to the days of signing the Mark Vidukas, Michael Owens and Alan Smiths of this world. There were easily as many failures with that policy: relegation in 2009 came.

The remit was reset in 2010. Newcastle had to be different: asset-heavy and rich in potential. That required a new approach that needed United to get smarter and better when it came to looking for talent in places like France.

For me the Carr era – and the scouting team involves others who are not as well-known but are every bit as good – has seen more success than failure. And while it’s a fun conversation starter – I’ve done it myself – the debate should really be about more than just listing all the players he’s signed and ticking off whether they’ve been good or bad at St James’ Park.

It’s not solely about watching a player and deciding whether he’s good. There’s no genius in deciding Georginio Wijnaldum is OK – but there is in doing a deal when half of the Premier League fancies him.

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Thanks to work done behind-the-scenes United now know the best fixers, agents and contacts in Holland, France, Belgium and the mid-tier markets in Spain and Germany to do business there. It’s a contacts game and Newcastle have some good ones, hence the Wijnaldum deal.

Remy Cabella and Florian Thauvin always looked like curious ones and the gamble hasn’t gone well, although the latter hasn’t really ever had a chance to make a difference. To their credit Newcastle seem to be correcting those mistakes quickly, and Jonjo Shelvey – like Jack Colback – is another coming on the back of long-term interest.

Newcastle’s problem is the inflexibility of the approach passed down by Ashley. They wouldn’t take Defoe, just like they demurred over Charlie Austin, because of worries about the value of the deal to them in three or four years. But what they need right now are goals: a Defoe or an Austin, in short.

They also thought they could get away with it between the summer of 2012 and the summer of 2014, adding infrequently and inexpensively. They’re only now making up for it.

There is a belief in the corridors of power at St James’ Park that United aren’t that far away from being a more-than-credible Premier League outfit again. League position is, it must be admitted, difficult to square with some decent performances since the pitiful Crystal Palace defeat.

But Newcastle will remain that far away as long as they remain inflexible in their approach. United aren’t bad at transfers: but they need to be better.