NEWCASTLE are adamant they will not be losing Ayoze Perez this summer, despite Spanish champions Barcelona expressing an interest in the attacking midfielder.

Magpies officials are currently conducting talks that should see Cheick Tiote and Florian Thauvin leave Tyneside, although Al-Jazira are still to table an acceptable offer for the former and Lazio are yet to tie up the fine details of a season-long loan deal for the latter.

Moussa Sissoko will also leave before the end of next month, with Real Madrid the latest club to be linked with the France international, but Newcastle boss Rafael Benitez is adamant he does not want Perez to join the exodus from St James’ Park.

Barcelona have sounded out the possibility of signing the Spaniard, who celebrates his 24th birthday today, as they are looking to recruit a fourth-choice forward to cover for Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar.

They have struggled to attract a new striker so far this summer, with Nolito, Kevin Gameiro and Luciano Vietto all shunning Barcelona’s advances because they were unwilling to spend the majority of their time on the substitutes’ bench.

Barcelona officials feel Perez might be more receptive to the offer of a move to the Nou Camp in the wake of Newcastle’s relegation to the Championship, but Benitez will urge managing director Lee Charnley to do all he can to keep the former Tenerife forward in the North-East.

With Sissoko set to follow Georginio Wijnaldum out of St James’, and Siem de Jong having fallen out of favour dramatically over the course of the last 12 months, Benitez has earmarked Perez as his preferred option in the ‘number ten’ role behind either Dwight Gayle or Aleksandar Mitrovic.

Perez filled that position during Tuesday’s friendly win at Southend United, and is expected to remain in the role for tomorrow’s final warm-up game against Vitesse and next Friday’s Championship opener at Fulham.

Mike Ashley has reassured Benitez he does not have to sell anyone he wants to keep despite last season’s relegation, and Perez falls firmly into that category.

Things are different when it comes to Tiote and Thauvin, and both players are still expected to leave in the next few days despite talks stalling in the last 24 hours.

Abu Dhabi-based Al-Jazira want to sign Tiote permanently, but Newcastle are holding out for an acceptable fee for the 30-year-old, who recently entered the final year of his current deal.

Thauvin has been lined up for a season-long loan with Lazio, and is keen to move to Rome. However, Lazio are hoping to set up an automatic clause enabling them to buy the Frenchman permanently next summer if he impresses on loan, and Newcastle are adamant they want to recoup the £14.5m they shelled out to sign Thauvin last summer.

It will be interesting to see if either Tiote or Thauvin feature in tomorrow’s game, which represents Benitez’s final opportunity to fine-tune his starting line-up for next week’s trip to Craven Cottage.

As things stand, two of this summer’s signings – Isaac Hayden and Dwight Gayle – look certain to start against Fulham, with three more – Matz Sels, Grant Hanley and Matt Ritchie – pushing hard for a place in the side.

Hayden has made quite an impression since completing a £2.5m move from Arsenal, and having spent last season on loan at Hull City, the 21-year-old is well positioned to be able to assess Newcastle’s promotion prospects.

Hayden made 18 league appearances for Hull last season, and regards the current Newcastle team as a much better footballing side than the Tigers line-up that secured promotion via the play-offs.

“The main difference between this team and Hull City last year is that we at Newcastle pass the ball a lot better than we did at Hull,” said the defensive midfielder.

“I think we get the ball down and want to play football – one or two touches. Maybe on a few occasions (in pre-season) we’ve played too many touches, yet overall we’ve played it around nicely and got a few passes and moved on from there.

“If we play like we have been during pre-season and take it on a notch in terms of moving it a bit quicker in some areas, then I don’t think we’ll have any problems as there are some quality players here.”

Hayden’s versatility enables him to play in the back four or in midfield, and while he is still getting to know his new team-mates, he cannot wait for the real business to begin in seven days’ time.

“Everyone's looking towards the first game of the season and the Vitesse game at St James' is another test, another foreign opponent, another challenge,” he said. “We’re unbeaten in pre-season so far and we’ve had a few good wins.

“It’s still early days for me and I’m still getting used to my team-mates. I’ve only really played with Rolando (Aarons) before at England level, so I’m still getting used to things, but it’s been good so far and I’m enjoying it.

“I’m learning in every training session, and the manager’s been fantastic for me personally and obviously for the team. I’m trying to learn as much as I can, integrate further with the team, and work towards getting the wins we’ll need.”