Newcastle United journalist Liam Kennedy insists that the club do not have a specific budget this summer.

The club have been reported as having a meagre pool of cash for new additions at St James’ Park.

The Daily Mail has reported previously that manager Steve Bruce had been told that he only had £10m to spend on strengthening his squad in this transfer window.

But that has now been contradicted by Kennedy, who insists that there is no set budget for the manager to spend, with additions decided upon based on their potential sell-on value, rather than their set price.

That tallies with reports that the club have actually agreed a deal to sign Joe Willock from Arsenal for a fee of around £25m, an outlay far above their reported budget in this window.

Kennedy said: “Newcastle is a funny one in terms of budgets.

“They never have a strict budget, it’s always a case of if they can sign a player that they believe will add value, and that doesn’t just mean add value to the team but also means, for example Willock, signing a 21-year-old who could go from a £20 million player to a £40 million player in a matter of years, which is entirely possible with Joe Willock because he has got a lot of ability.

“That’s the bit Newcastle need to weigh up.”

Willock enjoyed a fabulous half-season with the Magpies after arriving on loan in January, as he scored eight goals in 14 games, including strikes against both Liverpool and Manchester City.