THE lack of a permanent manager has not prevented Newcastle United from fleshing out their plans for life after Alan Shearer, with the club last night sending scouts to watch Dirk Kuyt, Feyenoord’s coveted centre forward. With Shearer retiring this summer and Michael Owen’s future still unclear, Newcastle’s requirement for attacking reinforcements cannot wait for the appointment of Graeme Souness’s successor.

“I have asked our chief scout, David Mills, to have a look at Kuyt this weekend,” Glenn Roeder, the caretaker manager, said. “He is a top player as far as I am concerned and I believe he will have a great World Cup for Holland. For me, he is out of the [Ruud] van Nistelrooy mould and I am a big admirer of both of them.”

Kuyt has scored 70 goals in 100 Eredivisie appearances for Feyenoord, including 21 this season, and has attracted attention from Tottenham Hotspur and Real Madrid.

Newcastle expressed an interest in Kuyt, 25, before signing Owen last August, but their decision to publicise it may be connected to the unease of supporters about an apparent lack of activity at St James’ Park. “Just because we have not yet appointed a permanent manager does not mean that our scouting team is not out there looking at players,” Freddy Shepherd, the chairman, said.

Owen, who has not played since breaking a bone in his foot on New Year’s Eve, remains on course to return before the end of the season.

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