Lille right-back Mathieu Debuchy and Twente defender Douglas are expected at St James' Park soon.
And tentative discussions have also taken place with Liverpool over a move for Andy Carroll, initially on a season-long loan.
Alan Pardew: “Any big player or good player that comes to the table, we need to be involved in it.
“We need to know what is going on. What is the price? Can we do it? Can we afford it? If we can’t we go somewhere else.
“We want the best quality players, and at the moment we have three possible transfers actively being pursued in terms of bids and trying to get a deal where the other club gets what they want and we get what we want.”