Ayoze Perez challenges Swansea midfielder Leroy Fer for possession during Newcastle's win

Owner Mike Ashley has been slammed by Toon fans for failing to provide more funds for boss Rafa Benitez to strengthen his squad this summer.

And Benitez himself has let it be known he’s not happy with the club’s summer transfer business which saw £10m Norwich winger Jacob Murphy as the most expensive buy.

But Spanish striker Perez insists Sunday’s 1-0 win at Swansea proves how determined the players already at the club are to rise to the challenge of mixing with the elite.

“This dressing room has a lot of ambition and we all have the desire to win games,” said Perez, who was part of the squad which was relegated two seasons ago.

“Nobody feels good when you get relegated, but we worked very hard to get back into this league and now we are here we want to show everyone that we deserve to stay.

“It is normal when the window is open that people don’t talk about the players that were here last season. There are always rumours about who might or might not come in.

“But we know our team and how strong we can be. We still have a lot of work to do, and we can improve a lot, but we know how good we are.”

Newcastle face Stoke on Saturday with the chance to win three Premier League games in a row for the first time since November 2014.

By then boss Benitez hopes to be back in action after missing the Swansea trip due to a hernia operation.

Perez added: “It will be good to be back in front of our own supporters and the results we have got will have given us more confidence.

“We have to keep that mentality because it is going to be a long, tough season. We have to keep going in the same way we have been in the last two games.”