After becoming frozen out at Aston Villa, Bent was looked at by a number of clubs ahead of the new season, but opted to move to Craven Cottage on a season-long loan.

Pardew has struggled to secure a number of targets over pre-season, seeing deals for Bafetimbi Gomis and Andre-Pierre Gignac fall flat.

And the 52-year-old believes Bent's previous ties to Newcastle's rivals Sunderland may have put him off attempting to win over the Tyneside faithful.

"I think he was close in terms of the deal, but Darren’s decided his future lies elsewhere and I wish him all the best," said Pardew. "It was very obvious that I thought he would do well here.

"Obviously you can't have contact with the player, but I know Darren well enough to think we had something which he was going to enjoy.

"But he has opted for Fulham and I think perhaps that is a safer option. Were the Sunderland links a factor? Possibly yes, and maybe the profile of this club as well. It is bigger than Fulham's, that's just a fact.”

Pardew has brought Loic Remy in to boost his attacking ranks, but is still looking to bring reinforcements to St James' Park in an attempt to avoid repeating last-season's disappointments, which saw the club flirt with relegation and ultimately finish 16th.

"We've been actively pursuing two or three players, and we would still like to get one or two in," said Pardew. "I don't see a lot of late business for us, but I do think we need another striker in.

"I think we've got a strong side, but I still maintain, and stats don't lie, in terms of threat at goal, we need a bit more offensively. Last season, especially after Demba (Ba) left, our goal ratio and shot ratio dropped off and our offensive impact in terms of putting a team on the back foot was affected.

"When you have two strikers of high calibre, teams are very reluctant to step on to you. But they did after Demba left and that was a problem for us. We need to get the team selection right, but we also need options in those areas. We've got Remy, but I still think we need another."