Joe Kinnear may be formulating plans for the January transfer window, but the sense of drift that continues to infect Newcastle United was highlighted yesterday when Steve Harper admitted that he is yet to be offered a new contract. Along with Michael Owen and Nicky Butt, the experienced goalkeeper’s present deal expires next summer, but there have been no negotiations regarding an extension.

Harper’s comments were a statement of fact, not a complaint, but as a reflection of events at St James’ Park, they were illustrative. At 33, Harper is in his prime for his position — as he demonstrated under Kevin Keegan in the latter half of last season — but, as things stand, he, Owen, his captain, and Butt will be entitled to leave on free transfers at the end of the season.

With the prospective sale of the club likely to be delayed until February — one of two American investment groups interested in buying Newcastle is engaged in due diligence — and Mike Ashley, the owner, reluctant to sanction expenditure before his departure, it seems unlikely that talks will begin. The perils of losing such established players should be obvious.

“My contract is up in the summer and I haven’t been offered a new one,” Harper said. “There are a few of us in the same boat and we’ll just keep working and see what happens. With everything that’s been going on, I don’t know what the situation is.

We’re in the dark as well as to whether the club’s being sold.

“But I’ve been fully committed here for the best part of 16 years and I’ll remain so until somebody tells me otherwise. When Kevin was here he did mention he would like to give me a new deal, but he’s not here any more and it’s died a death. It’s a hypothetical question. If the option was there, I would consider it, but at this moment in time, it’s not.”

Kinnear, the interim manager, has been told that, should he remain in situ in January, he will be required to balance the books if he wishes to add to Newcastle’s flimsy squad and with the team just one place above the Barclays Premier League relegation zone, the chances are that he will.

Kinnear has made contact with Roma about signing John Arne Riise, the former Liverpool left back who was a target of Keegan, on a loan basis. “We have been in touch with Roma to see what kind of package they are looking at for Riise,” Kinnear said. “We’re waiting to hear back from them.”

Kinnear has denied reports that Charles N’Zogbia is one of the players he would readily sell and the French midfield player, whose attitude has been questioned, has clarified his position after he was quoted last weekend as having expressed an interest in joining Paris Saint-Germain.

“In an ideal world I would want to stay with Newcastle United,” N’Zogbia said. “This is the first time I have spoken about my future and those quotes attributed to me over the weekend came from my agent back in France. Obviously I am not happy that I have hardly featured in Joe Kinnear’s starting line-up recently, but that is up to me to put right.”