What happened to Andy Carroll’s £35m transfer fee?

While Newcastle fans vent their fury over the imminent departure of captain Kevin Nolan – who is on the brink of signing for relegated West Ham – a more worrying question is starting to be asked around the Toon: where, exactly, is all that Andy Carroll money?

Manager Alan Pardew made it abundantly clear when Newcastle's star striker was sold to Liverpool for £35m in January that owner Mike Ashley promised him that every penny would be spent on the team.

"The one thing I said to Mike yesterday was, 'Look, if this boy is going to go, this money has to be reinvested in the team, all of it'," explained Pardew at the time.

"He has assured me of that," he continued. "For the Newcastle fan, that is the most important message I can give today, that all that money will be used."

Five months on, with the club's captain on his way out, the credibility of that message is now being seriously questioned.

Nolan has been crucial to Newcastle's recovery since their relegation in the 2008/09 season. The 28-year-old scored 18 goals and was named Football League player of the year as Newcastle bounced straight back from the Championship. Last season he was the club's top scorer, putting 12 goals past top flight opposition, and helping them to a solid 12th-place finish in the Premier League.

Yet thanks to Nolan's high wages and contract demands, Newcastle have deemed his services surplus to requirements. He is not alone: Joey Barton, voted the club's second best player last season by NUFC Blog, has not been offered a new contract.

Barton is not happy about the situation at St James' Park. He took to Twitter to lament the departure of his friend and midfield colleague Nolan and hinted that he, along with high-profile team mates Jose Enrique and Jonas Gutierrez, were also set to leave.

In their place, three youngsters with barely 10 first team appearances between them – 20-year-old Ryan Ronaldson and teenagers Michael Richardson and Shane Ferguson – have been offered contract extensions. The only new player to have signed for Newcastle so far is French midfielder Yohan Cabaye, although he did cost more than £4m.

But, a fortnight after the transfer window opened, all the signs suggest that Mike Ashley is looking to tighten up Newcastle's finances rather than spend the £35m he reportedly pledged.

Newcastle managing director, Derek Llambias, revealed in March that the club had slashed the wage bill from £71m to £47m, and stressed the need to financial "stability". The departure of high earners like Nolan and Barton would help drive the wage bill down further.

If Alan Pardew really does have his hands on the Andy Carroll treasure chest, selling his captain and top scorer is a funny way of showing it. Only once Toon fans see big money being spent on new signings will they believe that Mike Ashley really is willing to spend £35m this summer. ·