It is understood that the Magpies wish to retain only a handful of players for next season's battle to get out of the Championship.

And they will listen to offers for the rest as Mike Ashley looks to slash the huge will bill that is crippling the club.

Football agency First Artists have been hired by United to assist in finding buyers for the majority of the squad, and they have circulated managers with the details of which players are up for sale.

Only goalkeepers Steve Harper and Tim Krul, defenders Habib Beye, Steven Taylor and Sebastien Bassong, midfielders Damien Duff and Nicky Butt, and young striker Andy Carroll will be kept on at St James's Park if the club gets its way.

Bassong, however, wants a move away after just one season on Tyneside.

Arguably Newcastle's player of the season, the centre-back – linked with Sunderland – has a year remaining on his contract, worth just £5,000-a-week, a fraction of what some of his team-mates are earning.

He remains one of the club's most saleable assets, and while any new manager would wish to keep hold of the French-born star, an offer in excess of £5m for a player who cost just £500,000 12 months ago would be hard to reject.

"I want to leave," the 22-year-old said. "I want to develop in the Premier League.

"I will have to weigh up the pros and cons (of any offer), study the sporting project, the amount of playing time they would want to give me..."

Tottenham and Arsenal are reportedly interested in the former Metz player.

Butt and Carroll signed new deals towards the end of last season, while Beye and Duff both pledged their futures to the club in immediate aftermath of relegation.

Duff is on big wages, however, and while his name is on the retained list, any serious offer for the Irishman would be difficult to ignore.

The loss in revenue caused by dropping out of the Premier League, along with a £75m-a-year wage bill that is unsustainable outside of the top flight, always meant that high-earners would be sold.

Among those who appear to have played their last game in a black and white shirt are Fabricio Coloccini, Jose Enrique, Geremi, Jonas Gutierrez, Alan Smith, Kevin Nolan, Joey Barton and Obafemi Martins.

Coloccini has been offered to Marseille, although Newcastle know they will struggle to get anything close to the £10m Dennis Wise agreed with Deportivo La Coruna for the centre-half.

Enrique and Gutierrez could return to Spain, while a number of Premier League teams will be interested in Smith, Nolan and Barton if the price is right.

Geremi almost left the club in January, with the Tynesiders desperate to offload the Cameroonian internatioanl who is earning £60,000-a-week, though they may be forced to offer him on a free transfer.

The Magpies will be hoping to recoup a sizeable fee for Martins, however, while they will also listen to offers for fellow strikers Shola Ameobi and Xisco.

Ameobi only signed a new three-year deal last season, while Spanish flop Xisco has struggled to adapt to English football.

It remains to be seen who exactly has compiled the list, with Newcastle still managerless. Alan Shearer held lengthy discussions with Ashley and Derek Llambias a fortnight ago, and the make-up of the squad was believed to be on the agenda, but the ex-striker hasn't met with the St James's Park hierachy since.

Chris Hughton – who was put in caretaker charge when Joe Kinnear was ill last season – may have had some input, and the coach is in line to take charge of pre-season training if no new manager is in place by the time the players return on July 1.