Jay Rodriquez, Victor Wanyama, Gaston Ramirez and Dejan Lovren have arrived for the combined total of £40m during the past two transfer windows, which is in stark contrast to Newcastle’s frugal spending.
Alan Pardew: “We’ve definitely spent less money than them over the last two years.
“I don’t know if we are criticised. We are in some quarters, but the picture gets a bit cloudy with us sometimes.
“We’re a big club with 52,000 fans so that means we have to get success, but it’s very difficult to get success with the finance as it is.
"We’re going to stick with the game plan that we have and the structure that we have.
"We have a decent opportunity this summer to take this club forward because we have a good base to the squad, but we need some quality to come in.
“It’s a battle that I think both sides are looking at when you are around about each other, you want to prove that you are better (in the race for eighth).
"I was at Tottenham last weekend and Southampton were terrific and really should have got something out of the game. I know they are looking forward to the game as well.
“We are above them at the minute. We have had a season where we have lost a big player halfway through and we have had nowhere near the funding that Southampton have got, so in some ways, you could argue we have been battling against the tide here a little bit."