Newcastle have completed the deadline-day signing of Ireland striker Leon Best from Coventry for an undisclosed fee.
The 23-year-old has put pen to paper on a three-and-a-half year contract and will go straight into the squad to face Cardiff at St James' Park on Friday.
The Ireland international has been handed the number 20 shirt.
Best's contract at Coventry was due to expire in the summer and, even though a fee would have been due as he is under 24, the Sky Blues have cashed in now.
Newcastle boss Chris Hughton was keen to bring in a new striker before the close of the transfer window.
Best is expected to go straight into the Newcastle squad for this Friday's crucial game with Cardiff.
Fulham have completed the signing of Newcastle's Ireland winger Damien Duff for an undisclosed fee.
The 30-year-old made his name at Blackburn, where he played under current Fulham boss Roy Hodgson, before moving to Chelsea for £17m in 2003.
Duff then moved to Newcastle in the summer of 2006 for £5m.
"I am delighted to add a player of his calibre to our squad and welcome the further midfield options he provides us with," Hodgson told Fulham's website.
"I have known Damien for over a decade since he broke into the first team at Blackburn when I was manager, so I'm fully aware of his qualities and I am looking forward to working with him again."
Duff added: "I know that having spoken to the manager in recent days that the club's ambitions remain high and I am looking forward to the challenges ahead."
Fulham manager Roy Hodgson hopes to seal a deal for Damien Duff after confirming his interest in the Irish winger.
Hodgson has stated that Fulham are in discussions regarding the former Chelsea man, who previously worked under the Cottagers boss at Blackburn.
Duff, 30, is said to be keen on a move back to London and he could be on the verge of a reunion with his ex-manager.
"The clubs are talking and I hope the deal will go through. He's a player that interests us," said Hodgson.
"Damien and I go back a long way from when we worked together at Blackburn. He wants to come back to West London.
"Damien had injury problems at Chelsea and has done well at Newcastle given the turmoil there.
"Every time he's played for Ireland he's consistently been one of their best performers.
"We know what we'd be getting with Damien - he's an experienced and quality player."
Newcastle caretaker boss Chris Hughton says that Damien Duff is ready, willing and able to drive the Ireland side all the way to the World Cup finals in South Africa.
Duff has given Giovanni Trapattoni a boost ahead of Saturday's World Cup qualifier at home to Bulgaria, when he completed 90 minutes for Newcastle in their 3-1 defeat at home to Arsenal, Duff's first taste of action in a month.
The Dublin born player has started in the last three Ireland games under Trapattoni and will win his 73rd cap against Bulgaria at Croke Park before heading to Bari for that crucial game against Italy on April 1st.
And Duff's current club manager, former Ireland assistant boss Hughton, says that Duff's current form can lead Ireland to the World Cup for the first time since 2002.
"Damien is the player Ireland need if they are to get to the World Cup again, and if Damien stays fit for the rest of the campaign I can see him playing a big role for Ireland," Hughton said today.
"He's back to fitness now after being out for a few weeks, Newcastle missed him badly when he was out but he's come back at a good time for Ireland and he will be a key man in the next two matches.
"When you look at the Irish squad, you look to the ones who can make a difference, come up with one thing in a game that could change the course of a match and the campaign, and Damien is like that.
"Ireland are lucky in that they have some big occasion players like that, someone like Robbie Keane can get a goal from anywhere, Kevin Doyle has tremendous form, Aiden McGeady is always dangerous.
"But Damien is one who can create something out of nothing. When Ireland need him he's there and he's a vital player for the squad, he will be very important as the team look for those points against Bulgaria and Italy."
Giovanni Trapattoni assembled his squad in Dublin this morning before an afternoon training session at their Malahide training base and the Irish boss was relieved to see Duff report for duty, though there are some concerns over the fitness of Shay Given and Aiden McGeady.
"Both McGeady and Given are undergoing medicals at their clubs, but I'm sure they will be available for the next training," said Ireland's assistant coach Marco Tardelli.
"Given has a shoulder problem, but I'm sure he will be here for the Bulgaria game."
Meanwhile the FAI have prepared a contingency plan to deal with possible travel chaos on Monday due to a planned strike at Dublin airport.
The Irish squad are due to fly out to Bari at 4pm on Monday but they may need to change their plans if the strike goes ahead, and the panel may instead leave 24 hours early, from Belfast, or else fly out on Tuesday.
"We have at least two options available to us if Monday turns into a difficulty," said FAI CEO John Delaney.
"One would be going Tuesday from Dublin and one would be going Sunday, probably from Belfast. We're in constant contact with SIPTU and the DAA and they are keeping us advised."
Bulgaria only fly in to Dublin on Friday, 24 hours before the game, and the Italian squad will only arrive in Bari from their Tuscany base at 5pm next Tuesday, so Delaney says that coach Trapattoni is not worried about a late arrival.
His club may have just slipped into the relegation zone in England's Premier League, but Newcastle United's caretaker manager Chris Hughton believes that Damien Duff is coming into the kind of form which can drive the Republic of Ireland all the way to the World Cup finals.
Despite the result, a 3-1 defeat at home to Arsenal, Saturday was a big day for Duff as the 30-year-old managed his first full 90 minutes for United in almost two months, and he arrived in Dublin today for international duty ahead of the World Cup double header against Bulgaria and Italy high on confidence, according to Newcastle's stand-in manager.
"Damien is doing very well for us. The only disappointment is when he picks up an injury, which he has done on a couple of occasions this season.
"But his progress has been superb in the last while and he is back to his best, to the stage when he was one of the best players around, in my view," Hughton told the Evening Herald.
"Damien is the player Ireland need if they are to get to the World Cup again, and if Damien stays fit for the rest of the campaign I can see him playing a big role for Ireland.
"When you look at the squad, you look to the ones who can make a difference, come up with one thing in a game that could change the course of a match and the campaign, and Damien is like that. Ireland are lucky in that they have some big occasion players like that, someone like Robbie Keane can get a goal from anywhere, Kevin Doyle has tremendous form, Aiden McGeady is always dangerous.
"But Damien is one who can create something out of nothing. When Ireland need him he's there and he's a vital player for the squad," added Hughton, who worked with Duff in his time as assistant manager with Ireland under Brian Kerr from 2003-2005.
"He's a vital player for this club and for me. The thing that stands out with Damien is that he always wants to do well, he is so gutted when he is out injured and all he wants to do is play and win games for this football club.
"He has been out for the last few weeks but in all that time his attitude was exceptional, he was the ultimate professional, he worked hard all the time to try and get himself back. Every time he has been out it's been a big blow for him, and I think it makes him appreciate it even more when he does get back," added Hughton.
The former Tottenham full-back has some empathy with Giovanni Trapattoni and his coaching staff this week ahead of that massive double header in Dublin and Bari -- Hughton was part of the Irish staff the last time the Republic tried to qualify for a World Cup finals.
Results under Kerr and Hughton were impressive, with just four defeats in 33 games and only one loss in a competitive game, but Ireland still finished fourth in the qualifying group table, behind France, Switzerland and Israel.
"It's a tough group that Ireland have now but the team have had a good start and could get there under Mr Trapattoni. When the group was drawn up I always felt there was at least a chance for second place for Ireland, Italy were going to be favourites to win the group, but Ireland will really challenge them, especially over the next two games," said Hughton
"The team has excelled, especially as the manager hasn't had his full pick of players in some games, key people like Steve Finnan have been missing, so when you take that into account I think Trapattoni has done very well."
Manchester City new boy Shay Given has admitted he did not sleep on Sunday night because of his excitement at the prospect of his first day at training.
Donegal born Given completed a £6m move from Newcastle United on Sunday and is expected to make his debut against Middlesbrough at Eastlands on Saturday.
The Ireland star has spent the last 11 years at St James' Park, so there was bound to be a bit of apprehension as he stepped into the unknown.
''I was so excited last night that I couldn't sleep,'' he told the club's website.
''It will be like being a kid at a new school at training. I want to meet the lads, get to know my new surrounds and get down to work. I feel the best years are still ahead of me. I work hard in training to keep improving. That will never change.''
A veteran of World Cup and Champions League campaigns, Given is clear to feature in City's assault on the UEFA Cup - which begins against Copenhagen next month.
''I was delighted to get the move tied up, because of the UEFA deadline last night,'' he added. ''I didn't want to be sat in the stand if City are going to be picking up the UEFA Cup later this season.''
Given's arrival has been viewed as bad news for England international Joe Hart, who has been City's number one for the past 18 months.
However, the 32-year-old believes he can offer Hart and City's other young goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel some valuable advice in the future.
''I have a lot of experience that I can pass on,'' he said. ''They might not be all that happy to see me, but I would like to think that we can all work together and all improve together.
''I rate Joe highly. He has done fantastically well this season but he is still very young in goalkeeping terms.'' Although a mass of players have been linked with City, Given is likely to be Mark Hughes' last signing of the transfer window.
It's crunch time for Shay Given as Manchester City are poised to continue their relentless pursuit of Newcastle United’s unhappy goalkeeper.
The Ireland international and his agent was due to have a meeting with Newcastle manager Joe Kinnear and managing director Derek Llamabias today when it is thought Given will urge the club to allow him to leave before the close of the transfer window.
Although the Irish goalkeeper released a statement last month to publicly air his grievances at St James’s Park, Kinnear has stubbornly refused to consider his sale because of his importance to their mission to avoid relegation.
That stance had not changed last night, but the 32-year-old is set to force the issue ahead of Newcastle’s trip to the City of Manchester Stadium on Wednesday night and an official transfer request is not out of the question.
The Donegal man is still immensely frustrated on Tyneside and the club’s transfer activity during the January window has done nothing to persuade him the team’s fortunes are going to markedly improve in the short term.
The Magpies have turned down two bids for Given since the start of the year, but City will return with a third in the next few days and expect to break the resistance of the United hierarchy with an improved bid. That could be a fee of around £9m, or a cash plus players package, with Newcastle already expressing an interest in City’s England Under-21 internationals Michael Johnson and Nedum Onuoha. Kinnear is still reluctant to part with Given, but fears the decision will be effectively taken out of his hands, should the player officially request to leave St James’s Park today.
The departure of Given will be acutely felt by the Newcastle United fans who, since Alan Shearer’s retirement, have come to regard Given as the team’s figurehead. But, after 11 years of loyal service, there is also little resentment towards the goalkeeper for wanting to get out of a club which has failed to match his ambition for so long.
