Those words proved rather prophetic.
Newcastle managed to sign highly rated goalkeeper Ewen Jaouen from Stade de Reims for £18.5m before the window even officially opened.
However, just when it appeared they were in pole position to land top target Victor Munoz, the Spain winger joined Liverpool from Osasuna.
It felt like Groundhog Day for supporters after Joao Pedro, Hugo Ekitike, James Trafford and Benjamin Sesko opted to move to Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City and Manchester United respectively last summer.
Newcastle, as a result, moved further down their list of targets this time last year and, aside from defender Malick Thiaw, they have not yet seen enough of a return from a £100m-plus net spend.
The club cannot afford for history to repeat itself, but it is easy to forget the window only opened on 15 June.
It is also worth remembering that Newcastle have previously managed to attract a number of promising players.
Rather than making any guarantees about the team’s success, Howe’s pitches have instead centred on development, how his staff work and how they can help take a player’s game to another level.
Not every signing has gone on to thrive under Howe, but it was telling that Gordon repeatedly pointed to this “culture” of improvement at Newcastle as he sealed a dream move to Barcelona.
Another international, who followed Gordon to Newcastle, has also gone on to flourish.
“He wanted to come to Newcastle,” a source said.
“He had a couple of other opportunities but he had a good chat with the manager and believed in the project, the squad, the club and the league. That’s where he wanted to belong.
“His ambition is quite high. He wants to measure himself with the top elite players. It was just a match between Newcastle and him. There’s no doubt.”
