NEWCASTLE UNITED experienced a quiet deadline day, with Peruvian youngster Rodrigo Vilca the only player to arrive before the transfer window closes at 11pm.

Steve Bruce conducted the vast majority of his business before the start of the season, with Mark Gillespie, Jamal Lewis, Jeff Hendrick, Ryan Fraser and Callum Wilson already fully integrated into Newcastle’s first-team squad.

That meant the Magpies manager did not expect to be busy today, and despite suggestions of possible loan moves for Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Theo Walcott, Bruce did not attempt to recruit anybody on the final day of the window.

Vilca’s arrival from Peruvian side Deportivo Municipal was signed off over the weekend, with the 21-year-old moving to Tyneside for an initial fee of around £250,000.

The attacking midfielder has signed a four-year contract with Newcastle, but despite having already been promoted to the full Peruvian national squad, he will initially link up with the Magpies’ Under-23s group.

“At the beginning, I could not believe the opportunity to jump directly from Peru to a Premier League club,” said Vilca, who is following in the footsteps of his Peruvian compatriot Nolberto Solano. “The process had a lot of phases, with all this Covid disaster, so it has been a rollercoaster of emotions.

“I have cried with emotion, not once but several times, because there have been different milestones. At times, I have been tense, but now I am very happy and I hope to have a long and successful time in Newcastle.”

Vilca, an attacking midfielder who play in a central or a wide position, has scored two goals in ten appearances in Peru’s Primera Division this season.

“We’re delighted to have Rodrigo here,” said Chris Hogg, Newcastle’s lead player development coach with the Under-23s. “He’s an exciting attacking player, and we’ll be hoping to see that attacking ability. We’ll be looking to give him the opportunity to improve with us.”

It was also a quiet day in terms of outgoings, although some of Newcastle’s fringe players could still leave on loan to Football League clubs ahead of the EFL’s deadline of October 16.

DeAndre Yedlin was the subject of a number of inquiries, most notably from Southampton, who eventually opted to look elsewhere, and Spanish side Elche, who made a number of different approaches in an attempt to strike a deal.

However, an agreement could not be reached, and Yedlin remains on Tyneside even though he is extremely unlikely to feature in Bruce’s 25-man Premier League squad.

Christian Atsu also finds himself frozen out of the first-team picture, so interest from Watford and Nottingham Forest could lead to a loan deal in the next few days.