Newcastle United managing director Lee Charnley says the club will continue to plan while it remains up for sale.
Mike Ashley remains hopeful of finding a buyer.
Charnley said: “People talk about 'is the club on the market, or off the market?' The reality is most things in life are for sale – at a price.
“Are we planning, assuming Mike will still be the owner of this football club? The answer is 'yes' – because we have to.
"To do anything else wouldn't be the right thing."