Bobby Robson intimated yesterday he had not given up on signing Stephen Carr, the manager's response to Newcastle United's lack of activity in the transfer window.

In the end Newcastle brought in only Michael Bridges on loan from Leeds, and that surprised many as the club had been associated with bids, real or imagined, for Carr, Celtic's Henrik Larsson and Leeds's Alan Smith.

It has all been greeted with dissatisfaction on Tyneside. For the first time Robson's position is the subject of widespread local debate.

"We're going with what we've got and I think that will be good enough," Robson said of his squad. "What we want, we can't get at the moment, so we're keeping our powder dry and building up a little kitty for the start of next season."

It is believed Newcastle were quoted £4.5 million by Tottenham for Carr, a sum they expect to be slashed as the Irishman's contract enters its final year. However there was a significant amount of diplomacy in Robson's words. The Newcastle manager had a full-back and a striker as prime objectives last summer, but recruited only Lee Bowyer from West Ham.

Despite the lack of incomings in January, however, they removed seven players from the wage bill and recouped £3.6 million from the sales of Carl Cort to Wolves and Nolberto Solano to Aston Villa, with Lomana Lua Lua on loan at Portsmouth with a view to a permanent move.

The situation has left fans depressed, especially in the light of Solano's departure, but Robson is upbeat about Bridges.

"Michael has been fit for two months and he looks very good. He didn't sign a new contract at Leeds - I think he was despairing of the place - so he wasn't picked.

"He's looked great in training and he's so pleased to be back home. Michael is an artist and he's only 25."

Meanwhile, Jermain Defoe yesterday hit back at Terence Brown after being criticised by the West Ham chairman.

The England under-21 striker had been irritated by the Hammers board, whose resignation to losing him resulted in his £7 million move to Tottenham on Monday.

Yet Defoe's relationship with West Ham had broken down long before that and Brown, frustrated at the lack of success in contract talks, had claimed at the a.g.m. in December that Defoe's "head's not right".

"It was a shock to hear that from the chairman and it hurt me," Defoe said yesterday. "I'm still young; I'm 21 and to hear something like that, it's not nice.

"There was talks about me extending my contract at West Ham but I was just thinking about playing my football. Definitely it hurts to be accused of disloyalty, when you pick up a paper and you think what someone has said about you is not true. You just get on with it and try to prove people wrong."