The sale of Newcastle United is unlikely to be completed until February at the earliest. Prospective buyers are struggling to complete any takeover until after the closure of the next transfer window. While one of the two American investment groups interested is engaged in due diligence, progress is painstaking.

Keith Harris, of Seymour Pierce, the bank charged with selling Newcastle, said: “If you put yourself in the position of a prospective owner of Newcastle, or any other football club, you want to be there and have a chance to work with the manager to decide on what should happen to the playing staff, both coming in and going out. If that wasn’t the case, you probably want to wait and see how the activity was in January, so you would defer it until February.

“Unless it is going to happen in the next couple of weeks, it is likely to be deferred until after the close of the window. This is when people have got some hopes that the financial chaos will have settled down a little.”

Contrary to his prediction last Thursday, Joe Kinnear has met Mike Ashley, Newcastle’s owner, for talks and has been told his rolling contract as temporary manager will be extended for another month.