Keith Downie has revealed that Newcastle United’s hopes of signing new players in the January transfer window may depend on the next two days.

The club have only signed two players in the window thus far, bringing in Kieran Trippier from Atletico Madrid and Chris Wood from Burnley.

What’s the latest with Newcastle?

They are making a real attempt to bolster Eddie Howe’s squad in this window.

However, the club have somewhat struggled to bring players in, especially in central defence.

A deal for Lille’s Sven Botman fell apart after a bid was rejected by the French club, while the club’s pursuit of Diego Carlos at Sevilla also appears to be falling apart, with a £30m bid not deemed sufficient.

A move for Dan Burn at Brighton & Hove Albion has also been rejected, while their pursuit of Manchester United’s Jesse Lingard has fallen apart too, over a prohibitively expensive loan fee.

However, the club are closing in on a potential deal for Lyon midfielder Bruno Guimaraes, per reports, after seeing a £30m bid accepted.

Lyon have refuted reports claiming that a deal is advanced, but Sky reports that they employed a similar tactic before selling Ferland Mendy to Real Madrid.

Downie has now confirmed that the club are interested in doing loan deals before the window closes, but that they will have to move swiftly if they are to bring in any more permanent signings in addition to Trippier, Wood and, potentially, Guimaraes.

What did Downie say?

Speaking to GiveMeSport, he said: "Yes, they're looking at the loan market but they're going to have to be very, very quick if they're to bring someone in for a fee so I think today and tomorrow, probably tomorrow more than today, will be decisive."

Arthur to Arsenal OFF! More on Football Terrace...

Can Newcastle get these deals done?

The Guimaraes deal certainly looks advanced enough to be completed by the Magpies but the other transfers are a little more up in the air.

It has been suggested that Newcastle want as many as five new players to join the club in the final week of the window but that looks like an impossible task.

As mentioned, numerous bids for defenders have been rejected, and it is starting to look like the club are panicking.

A move for Burn could well be seen as a shrewd one but it is also something of a comedown from the early window pursuits of both Botman and Carlos.

It is reaching crunch time for the new ownership as they bid to give Eddie Howe the squad he needs in order to avoid relegation and the clock is ticking.

As Downie says, we are entering a crucial period in this transfer window.