Newcastle United are chasing Wolves captain Karl Henry.
The People says with fans favourite Barton close to a £4million switch to Everton, Newcastle are looking to strengthen their midfield and Pardew likes the idea of pairing Henry with Cheik Tiote in the centre of the park.
Henry's no-nonsense style of play has caused plenty of controversy this season. He became embroiled in war of words with Fulham's Danny Murphy after his challenge on Bobby Zamora left the Cottagers' striker with a broken leg back in September.
Just a few weeks later, Henry was given a red card after just 11 minutes after a horror challenge on Wigan's Jordi Gomez - a wild lunge which he later apologised for.
